02. Is there oxygen to be found anywhere in space? (RR) (A K2S Question)

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Actually, there is oxygen in space; however, the majority of it has already been captured gravitationally by stars, planets, or other celestial bodies. So space is almost a perfect vacuum, but gas and dust particles do float around out there. These particles are referred to as the interstellar medium by astronomers. According to Thomas Arny's Explorations: An Introduction to Astronomy, if we were to compare the amount of gas in interstellar space to the air we breathe, it would be like "one marble in a box five miles on a side compared to the same box filled completely with marbles." So needless to say, there isn't very much oxygen in outer space, but there is some. And the reason there isn't more is simply that the gravity of all the other various celestial objects out there, including galaxies, has captured most of the gas and dust.

Answer provided by Lonnie Moffitt & Russell Romanella


Image:K2S logosmall.jpg Question and Answer extracted from the book Kids to Space - by Lonnie Schorer


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