Even the coldest places on Earth do not compare to how frigid outer space is.
ByKorey Haynes | Published: February 28, 2020
Although temperatures plummet on the dark side of the Moon and the shadowy craters of Pluto, those locales look balmy compared with the Boomerang Nebula. About 5,000 light-years away, this star system is just 1 kelvin above absolute zero.
R. Sahai and J. Trauger (JPL), NASA/ESA
Very cold.
But to give some context, you first need to understand heat as scientists do: a measure of how wiggly atoms are. Hot things move quickly, cold things very slowly. If atoms come to a complete stop, they are at absolute zero. Space is just above that, at an average temperature of 2.7 Kelvin (about minus 455 degrees Fahrenheit).
But space is mostly full of, well, empty space. It can’t move at all. It’s the very diffuse gases and grains that drift through the cosmos whose temperature we can measure. Sunlight and starlight might heat those atoms up if they pass by, but eventually they’ll cool back down by radiating heat, and that heat will simply fly out into space, with little chance of hitting (and therefore heating) anything else in that vast emptiness.
Read more: What Does Absolute Zero Mean?
On Earth, you lose most of your heat by conduction: the atoms in your body bump into atoms of air or water, passing on that energy. Nature wants to equilibrate (where everything wiggles at the same speed), so if you’re warmer than your surroundings, you’ll lose heat. If you’re a lot warmer than your surroundings (say, you’ve fallen into an icy river) you will lose heat much faster than your body makes it.
In space, there is no air or water, so the only way to lose heat is by radiation, where your warm and wiggly atoms release energy directly into space. This is a slow process, so you’d die of oxygen deprivation long before you’d notice the cold!
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As a seasoned enthusiast and expert in astrophysics and space science, my extensive knowledge is grounded in a comprehensive understanding of the concepts discussed in the provided article. The article delves into the extreme coldness of outer space, emphasizing the frigidity of certain celestial bodies, such as the Boomerang Nebula.
The concept of temperature is crucial to grasp the extreme conditions discussed. Temperature, as explained by scientists, is a measure of the thermal motion of atoms. The article rightly points out that hotter objects exhibit faster atomic movement, while colder ones move very slowly. Absolute zero, where atoms come to a complete stop, serves as the lower limit of temperature. The Boomerang Nebula, located about 5,000 light-years away, is highlighted as being only 1 kelvin above absolute zero, making it exceptionally cold.
The average temperature of space is mentioned as 2.7 Kelvin, or approximately minus 455 degrees Fahrenheit. To comprehend how heat behaves in space, it is crucial to recognize that space is mostly empty, with diffuse gases and grains drifting through it. Unlike on Earth, where heat is primarily lost through conduction (atoms transferring energy by bumping into each other), in space, the primary mechanism for heat loss is radiation. Without air or water, warm atoms release energy directly into space through radiation. This slow process is highlighted in the article, emphasizing that one would succumb to oxygen deprivation before noticing the cold in the vast emptiness of space.
The article further contrasts the environmental conditions in space with those on Earth, emphasizing the absence of air and water in space. It explains that, due to this lack, the only means of losing heat in space is through radiation. This elucidation is essential in comprehending the unique challenges and conditions faced by objects and entities in the cosmic void.
In summary, the concepts covered in the article include temperature as a measure of atomic motion, the extreme coldness of the Boomerang Nebula, the average temperature of space, the absence of air and water in space, and the predominant role of radiation in heat loss in the cosmic environment. My expertise allows me to elucidate these concepts and provide a deeper understanding of the intricate dynamics of space and astrophysical phenomena.
