NASA, what to do if someones dies in space? (sound, best)

[Cape Cod Todd]

Here is an interesting article seen on Yahoo news feed this morning.

http://finance.yahoo.com/news/heres-...133418466.html

It talks about the protocol that NASA is discussing over what to do if an astronaut dies in space.
Wrapping the body up and putting it outside the space craft to freeze then bringing it back in to smash up into little pieces sounds a bit gross but not as gross as chopping it into bits for fertilizer.

I say leave it up to the astronaut.

If it were me I would want to be zipped up in one of those silver foil bags like a potato and shot out the air lock to be burned up in the atmosphere. This could be timed so my relatives on Earth could see my shooting star streak overhead.

If you were to die in space what would you want done with your body?

[Charles22]

My hope is that they're not hiring astronauts who are hung up on superstitious feelings about the disposition of their corporal bodies after they expire.

The press release is probably some stunt by NASA to preserve funding by appeasing the fundamentalists who control their budget.

[plwhit]

Wrap it up, take it outside the ISS/whatever and gently push the body outwards into deep space.

The astronauts body (barring any collisions with anything) will transverse the Multiverse.

Awesome

[blktoptrvl]

Originally Posted by plwhit

Wrap it up, take it outside the ISS/whatever and gently push the body outwards into deep space.

The astronauts body (barring any collisions with anything) will transverse the Multiverse.

Awesome

Sounds awesome, but you'd have to strap a rocket on him in order to escape earth gravity. It's best to just bring the body home and let the family decide from there.

[thecoalman]

Originally Posted by plwhit

Wrap it up, take it outside the ISS/whatever and gently push the body outwards into deep space.

The astronauts body (barring any collisions with anything) will transverse the Multiverse.

Awesome

As noted in the article their concern is bacteria in the body that can survive in a deep freeze for some ridiculous amount of time reaching another planet.

Here's a thought, one of theories is that life on earth got it's start from organisms in a comet. I'm sure it's been thought of but I never heard it, perhaps it was an alien corpse.

[plwhit]

^^^ Now there's a new concept...