By Amira Shehata
Saturday, July 22, 2023 at 10:00 am
Scientists have called for urgent research into the effects of sex in space.They say sex among space tourists will occur within 10 years, but NASA insists categorically that “no human has ever had sex in space”.
According to the British Daily Mail, Professor David Cullen has called for an investigation into the idea that movies from Star Trek to Passengers have been referencing space sex in science fiction movies for years.
And while NASA is adamant that “no human ever has sex in space,” that may soon change with the spread of space tourism.
Private space companies, including Jeff Bezos’ Blue Origin and Richard Branson’s Virgin Galactic, offer the public access to space, albeit at a steep price.
With this new era of space travel, David Cullen, professor of bioanalytical technology at Cranfield University, has called for urgent research into the effects of sex in space.
“My colleagues and I believe that space tourism companies have not adequately prepared for the consequences of joining what we call the ‘Karman Line Club,’ and the Karman Line is the boundary 62 miles above sea level that marks the beginning of space,” he wrote in an article in The Conversation.
Although NASA does not expressly prohibit sex in space, its astronaut code of conduct requires “relationships of trust” and “professional standards” to be maintained at all times.
The space agency has banned married couples from going into space together, though that’s mostly due to team dynamics, not fear of them having sex.
Despite this, sex in space will happen within the next decade, Professor Cullen says: ‘Space travel is no longer reserved for professional astronauts, given the different motivations of space tourists and future developments in spacecraft, we have concluded that sex in space will happen within the next 10 years.
But sex in space will not be a problem, the main problem will be microgravity, which will make it difficult for astronauts to have close physical proximity. The lack of gravity affects physical movement, but it can also cause problems inside the body.
According to Larry Meeks of AI Signal Research, circulation in space is affected and that makes it harder for a man to get an erection.
“There is no gravity to pull the blood down,” he said in a NASA article, “instead, the blood goes to the chest and head, causing the astronauts’ faces to swell and the blood vessels in their necks to swell.”
Although sex in space has yet to happen, Prof Cullen says sexual interactions are not a real concern, but rather research is needed into the effects of matter in space.
Early orbital space tourism flights are expected to last days to weeks, so only the earliest stages of human reproduction will occur in space, he explained. The space tourism industry does not seem to consider hidden or unknown pregnancies.
“There is an unknown potential for developmental abnormalities in human fetuses created in space,” Professor Cullen said.
In addition, the risk of ectopic pregnancy may be higher in nongravid conditions (when the embryo attaches itself outside the uterus, for example, in the fallopian tubes).
