Fly high: Is it possible to have sex in space
When flights to Mars become something of a cruise, sex in space will turn into standard entertainment. But so far all that we see in the movie is fantasies and special effects far from life, based on the idea that mankind has learned how to create space stations with artificial gravity. While sex in space remains a big question - and we tried to figure out why.
Random orgasms and masturbation
The spaces of pure cosmos are interesting for many of us not by themselves, but from the point of view of human life: how to survive there? Will there be a place for simple human needs in the distant future (perhaps among biorobots and cyborgs), and is it possible? Imagine a flight to Mars: you have to spend a few years on a journey, and then, probably, spend the rest of your life on an unknown planet with a team. In such a situation, complete abstinence is hardly possible. Writer Mary Roach, author of popular science books about sex, in one of her interviews gave astronauts a secret: masturbation and occasional orgasms in a dream - this is all the sex kit that is available in orbit.
Has anyone already had sex on the space station? Why not, because they are astronauts. Who knows, suddenly space powers have already decided to investigate this aspect of life at orbital stations and have classified all reports? It is easiest to suspect that already existing couples - for example, cosmonauts, spouses Mark Charles Lee and Nancy Jan Davies, who traveled to space shuttle in 1992. Of course, they didn’t say anything, and, frankly, it’s hard to imagine how they would manage to do that. Having sex in space, at least for now, is not so easy. Space is sorely lacking, and privacy is out of the question. And even if we imagine that these details do not confuse astronauts, there are more serious difficulties. The main problem of sex in space - gravity, more precisely, its absence.
Weightless Sex
Fantasies about sex in space are associated with weightlessness. In this state, the body can do everything that some people don’t dream of on earth. Tumbling, standing "upside down" (although there is no top or bottom in space) - it seems that in such conditions you can finally try out all poses that are inaccessible before. In-flight sex itself seems to be a unique experience that is hard to refuse. Unfortunately, the beautiful picture of freely intertwining bodies has nothing to do with the harsh cosmic reality. And it's all in the same weightlessness that so captures the imagination. Imagine the absence of gravity: objects fly freely, so much so that they are difficult to hold - the slightest push will cause the object to fly as far as the dimensions of the space on the spacecraft allow. In this case, it is rather difficult to imagine sex without frictions, so this problem will have to be somehow solved, for example, with the help of fasteners and belts - at the same time it will be necessary to put up with the inevitable restriction in movements and fantasies.
In the third season of the popular science television series "Universe" they checked whether sex is possible in space. Partners were connected to each other with the help of specially designed costumes with stickies, which are transformed into a common cocoon with a slight movement of hands, within which partners can move without fear of scattering like comets. Although this experiment had a lot of restrictions (for example, weightlessness was switched on in series for thirty seconds, and during that time, reaching out to each other, buckling up and at least kissing was already a super task), the test of the suit was successful, and the testers completed the minimum task. By the way, the author of the costume was a woman - writer Bath Bonta, who has long been interested in the topic of space and everything connected with it. She and her husband conducted research on the cocoon costume. Already, astronauts use belts and handrails simply to travel around space stations in zero gravity. Surely a few extra belts or special space sex swings - preferably in a separate room - can solve the problem at least partially.
Excess liquid
In zero gravity, the liquid immediately takes the ideal shape of a ball and begins to fly, and during sex the body releases many liquid products. If we assume that they are still engaged in sex not in a special suit, then a sexual intercourse in space will require a separate room with good ventilation and a cleaning system so as not to worry about fluid bubbles moving freely in space. True, so far there are no extra rooms at space stations, because space has to be saved. But otherwise, the problem is not big - since we were able to resolve the issue of using the toilet and cleanliness (look at how astronaut Chris Hadfield tells about it), they can also equip a room for sex. Another thing is that you should not rely only on natural vaginal lubrication: perhaps the fluid (even such a viscous) will not behave exactly as we used to. Ventilation will be needed in order to survive the hot sex - in space there is no wind and drafts, reminds Bath Bont.
Space Viagra
Another problem with sex in weightlessness lies deeper - in our health. How exactly the cosmos affects humans, while it’s not really clear - in fact, we know almost nothing, we can only conclude that astronauts have a hard time. For example, weightlessness in a certain way affects the work of the circulatory system. In the case when gravity does not attract blood down, the fluid inside the body is distributed differently than on the ground. The blood rises to the organs of the upper half of the body and to the head, the heart begins to work in a different mode - it pumps more blood. Due to this phenomenon in space, you can not use a bra: the chest still does not fall down and does not cause discomfort. In addition, the blood that rises to the head, smooths wrinkles and makes the lips and cheeks brighter. True, as a side effect swells face.
Due to the fact that the fluid circulates differently, it can be more difficult to achieve an erection. A simple excitement may not be enough to pump the penis with blood - especially if a person has been in orbit long enough for the body to rebuild into existence in space. Theoretically, an erection remains possible, but much depends on the individual processes in the body. This also applies to women: in space conditions, arousal may not be enough to direct blood to the genitals. Still, sex is a load on the body, and astronauts need to constantly train, because in bonelessness, the musculoskeletal system suffers, which atrophy without a sense of support. Perhaps we are still waiting for discoveries that will help replace space treadmills with costumes for sex.
Sex and children
Sex is also used during childbirth, and if we are already thinking about long interstellar flights, then this topic will sooner or later be of interest. Scientists have long been devoting this study - for example, in 1994, in weightlessness, they managed to fertilize fish eggs. In this case, the researchers chose a simple path and chose animals that did not have to sew special suits for mating. The fish did well, but people are harder than fish. How will the placenta feel in zero gravity? How in conditions when blood circulation has changed, will pregnancy proceed? How, in the end, will the delivery take place and will the smooth muscles contract in the right way? At a minimum, there will be no horrific stories about how a midwife dropped a baby, but how will a child develop in weightlessness, learn to walk, build muscles and build bones, when even adults need a long recovery on Earth after several months in orbit?
Because of problems with fertilization in conditions of weightlessness, scientists have so far managed to conduct experiments only in mice and rats. The data are not impressive: fertilization with low gravity occurs less frequently than with the earth, and then weightlessness negatively affects the embryo, leading to pathological changes, especially in the nervous system. Even those rat pups who were born in weightlessness were lagging behind in development — for example, they could not roll over. It can be assumed that in humans, upright walking will not develop as it does on Earth. This means that on any planet where there is gravity, space people will suffer and expose the spinal cord to grave danger. Perhaps, especially for them, space suits will have to be equipped with exoskeletons - however, astronauts who were born on Earth, but have been in space for a long time, may also need such devices.
Sex toys
It is unlikely that sex in space can be harmful - it is no more dangerous than other stresses to which astronauts are subjected. Given that at the onset of pregnancy, there may be different risks for both women and fetus, it is worth considering the issue of contraception before space travel. As for sex toys, not everybody is suitable for space. Any motor during operation may overheat, because the cooling will not work. Nevertheless, the most complex instruments work in space. If NASA or Roscosmos seriously decide to do research on sexuality in space, they will figure out how to improve the vibrator. The question is also in female physiology: how sensations will change in weightlessness. While there were fewer women in orbit than men, and they usually spend less time in missions, moreover, they were not asked directly about sex.
The first space tourists are also unlikely to be able to try sex in weightlessness. In the near future, they will be available no more than other astronauts: a minimum of space, a maximum of radiation, the complexity of weightlessness and the unpredictable consequences of experiments. Perhaps this is due to the fact that long flights, which will take years, became possible relatively recently and no one seriously considered how astronauts will live in a close team.
While filmmakers and engineers are just coming up with the concept of spinning ships, as in Interstellar, Pornhub tried to approach the issue head on and launch the fundraising campaign for the first adult film in space on Indiegogo. Nothing came of it — the project would have gone too expensive, but space is still far from ordinary people. It is possible, however, that some of the space tourists will decide to voluntarily devote themselves to such an experiment.
Photo:dkidpix - stock.adobe.com (1, 2)
