Can You Survive in Space Without a Spacesuit?

[Keklas Rekobah]

According to This article, you can:

http://www.slate.com/id/2171522/?GT1=10346

But for only a few minutes, after passing out in 15 seconds due to lack of oxygen. If you survive, the immediate effct would be a total-body "Space Hickey" from all the capillaries under your skin rupturing. Later effects could be skin cancer from instense solar U/V radiation.

But if you had held your breath, you would have died almost immediately from the alveoli in your lungs exploding and forcing the air directly into your bloodstream and eventually your brain.

For game purposes, the first 15 seconds (2D + (1 per END above 12)) are critical, as that's when your character would still be conscious enough to act. After that, he'd better be friends with the guy in the spacesuit, or at least owe him a lot of money! Or 2 to 12 minutes later (2D), he's irretrievably dead.

 

[Thunderbolt]

The sequence in 2001: A Space Odyssey always struck me as the definitive sucking vacuum experience.

Having heard the lurid details of how the bends can affect divers, freeze drying effects and the tendency of the body to expand, you'd be wondering just how grateful you would be 'surviving' such an event.

 

[Keklas Rekobah]

Having heard the lurid details of how the bends can affect divers, freeze drying effects and the tendency of the body to expand, you'd be wondering just how grateful you would be 'surviving' such an event.

You mean, considering the alternative?

 

[Andrew Boulton]

All you need to know (and more): http://www.sff.net/people/geoffrey.landis/vacuum.html

 

[Keklas Rekobah]

All you need to know (and more): http://www.sff.net/people/geoffrey.landis/vacuum.html

Tends to support the article I cited, and in greater detail.

It should be noted that irreversable brain damage in humans begins after about 4 minutes of total oxygen deprivation. So, I propose the following game mechanics, to be applied when a character experiences sudden decompression (when the faceplate of his helmet shatters during EVA, for instance):

Time to loss of consciousness: 2D seconds, plus 1 second per point of END above 12.

Time to beginning of irreversable brain damage: 4 minutes, plus 1 minute per point of END above 12. Thereafter, the character loses 1 point of INT per minute until resuscitated. Lost INT points are not recoverable.

Time to total, irreversible brain death is: 4 minutes, plus 1D minutes, plus 1 minute per point of END above 12.

Thus, for a character with END-12 or less whose helmet suddenly pops off during EVA:

After 2 to 12 seconds: Loss of consciousness (Hope that your character will be rescued soon).

After 240 seconds: Brain death begins (Consider rolling another character).

After 300 to 600 seconds: Total brain death occurs (Roll another character).

Sleep well tonight!

 

[Spinward Scout]

Or 2 to 12 minutes later (2D), he's irretrievably dead.

If you ask a paramedic, you're not dead until you're warm and dead. There's 400 degrees difference between light and shadow in space. People have been recusitated after being in almost freezing water for more than a half hour. If your body temp drops fast enough... Poor Man's Cryogenics?

EDIT: Oops - I guess I should read the article first about vacuum not conducting heat well. Cold water sucks the heat right out of you.

The sequence in 2001: A Space Odyssey always struck me as the definitive sucking vacuum experience.

The Dave Bowman scene? The Frank Poole scene gets finalized in 3001.

 

[Valarian]

It should be noted that irreversable brain damage in humans begins after about 4 minutes of total oxygen deprivation. So, I propose the following game mechanics, to be applied when a character experiences sudden decompression (when the faceplate of his helmet shatters during EVA, for instance):

You forgot the reflex save (or CT equivalent) to avoid holding your breath.

 

[hunter]

Pg 388 of the THB for T20.

 

[Fritz_Brown]

...to be applied when a character experiences sudden decompression (when the faceplate of his helmet shatters during EVA, for instance):

If you're quick thinking enough, just wrap your towel around the helmet to cover the hole....

You did bring your towel, didn't you?

 

[Andrew Boulton]

Pg 388 of the THB for T20.

The "Signs of Atmospheric Change" bit on p387 looks remarkably like part of the page I linked to...

 

[Qstor2]

The new movie Sunshine got it wrong, when one of the characters froze after about 2 minutes.

Mike

 

[Keklas Rekobah]

Pungent response

You forgot the reflex save (or CT equivalent) to avoid holding your breath.

That's assumed in the lowest die roll results, by you could roll 2D under DEX to do it ... or maybe 2D under INT to remember to do it in the first place ... ?

Ah, well ... "death by asphyxiation" or "death by ebulism" ... either one is covered by "death by vacuum."

And that really sucks.

 

[Thunderbolt]

You mean, considering the alternative?

The alternative I was considering was to be able to re-enter the campaign with a new character rather than roleplaying lying on a bed in intensive care, but I understand what you mean

 

[Andrew Boulton]

I have been known to punish stupidity by letting PCs *live* - badly injured - rather than simply roll up a new one.

Except the bit with the nuke. Couldn't fudge that...

 

[Spinward Scout]

... either one is covered by "death by vacuum."

And that really sucks.

Just had a picture of an old woman beating a mugger over the head with a vacuum cleaner.

 

[bozzutoman]

The new movie Sunshine got it wrong, when one of the characters froze after about 2 minutes.

I just saw the BSG episode where Galen and Calli had to do a freestyle EVA. Looks like they got it wrong as well.

For the jump, they were both wearing soft-seal breathing masks, which would be pretty useless for breathing.

Worse yet, they were in vacuum for less than 30 seconds, yet during their recuperation scene Calli was in a hyperbaric chamber. In the next episode, she was still wobbly and using a cane.

 

[tikio]

He's dead, Jim