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Q&A

Immediate physical effects of being exposed to space for nine seconds?

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I am writing a short story in which a character is ejected out of an air lock in a space ship. He quickly re-enters (disregard how he does this) and the chamber re-pressurizes, but he is exposed to space for about nine seconds, and without oxygen for about 12 seconds. Given that the plot then has him engaging in a fire fight essentially right away, I was wondering how realistic such a scenario was.

Based on an article I've found, the character (who we'll call Dave), would lose consciousness in ~15 seconds from lack of oxygen. His blood would begin to boil and tissues expand. He could be exposed to extreme temperatures, irradiated by the sun, and even riddled by dust or debris.

Question: Assuming Dave escapes anything lethal (by some miracle of plot armor, no doubt), what are the best and worst case scenarios for his immediate physical condition once the chamber re-pressurizes? I'm basically looking for a range which I can work in.

ie: In the department of space dust/rock, the best case scenario is that he escapes injury entirely. The worst case scenario, short of lethal damage, is that his spinal cord has been punctured in several places, leaving him unable to move. I'm looking for something along those lines, though obviously with a bit more explanation/evidence to back it up.

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