Space Myths Busted

There are some commonly held beliefs about space that simply aren't true!  We're here to set the record straight.

Myth: The sun is burning.
Fire needs three things: fuel, heat, and oxygen.  The sun has plenty of fuel, as it is composed of mostly hydrogen and helium gases.  It also generates an enormous amount of heat energy.  But it's missing the third necessary factor to create fire: there is no oxygen in space!

Instead, the sun produces heat and light through a process called thermonuclear fusion.  Inside the star, hydrogen atoms collide at high speeds, allowing their nuclei to fuse together.  This creates helium and releases huge amounts of energy in the form of gamma-ray radiation!

Myth: The asteroid belt is dangerous.
It's true that there is a lot of rock in the area of space known as the asteroid belt.  It contains over 3,000 minor planets and more than 750,000 separate asteroids!  However, it is relatively easy to navigate a spacecraft through this rocky area.  The asteroid belt covers an area that is approximately 140 million miles across.  The average amount of space between each object is about 600,000 miles.  This all means that, despite how it's depicted in science fiction, the asteroid belt is still relatively empty!

Myth: The Great Wall of China can be seen from space.
We're actually a little sorry to debunk this one because it's such a fun idea.  At 13,171 miles long, the Great Wall of China is the longest man-made structure on Earth.  It's long, but it is not wide, and it is made of materials that blend well with surrounding terrain.  In low-Earth orbit, the wall is easy to pick out using radar, but it is, unfortunately, invisible to the naked eye.

Myth: Saturn is the only ringed planet in the solar system.
When you think of a planet with rings, Saturn undoubtedly comes to mind.  The gas giant has seven main rings, and they are visible from Earth with the aid of a telescope.  However, Jupiter, Uranus, and Neptune also have rings.  They are much thinner and less visible from Earth.  Their existence was confirmed by the Voyager flyby missions in the 1970s and 1980s.

Myth: Meteorites are hot.
As meteorites pass through Earth's atmosphere, the outside of them becomes so hot that the surface rock begins to melt.  That heat is all on the outside though.  Much like searing a steak, the outside gets hot, but the inside remains cool.  By the time a meteorite impacts the Earth, it is likely only mildly warm to the touch.

And finally,
Myth: We would explode in space without a spacesuit.
We are adapted to the pressure of Earth's atmosphere, and without this water in our tissue begins to evaporate and the body starts to swell.  This doesn't lead to an explosion though, because human skin is super stretchy!  What does happen is that after about ten seconds of exposure to space, a person becomes unconscious.

What are your favorite space myths?  Bust them for us in the comments!