Can You Shoot A Gun Or Blast A Bomb In Space?

Militarization in space has long been a reality. There are reconnaissance and espionage satellites that have their sights on the earth and serve military purposes. But no one has heard of weapons. Can you shoot a gun in space? Is it even possible to shoot in space with normal weapons?

Yes, you can shoot with normal weapons even in weightlessness. It doesn’t matter whether you use the cannon or the shaped charge principle. The technical implementation does not require any special features. Both propellant charge powder (gunpowder) for the cannon and explosives for the shaped charge principle could be accommodated in a satellite without any problems. Both remain fully functional even in weightlessness.

So What Happens When You Shoot A Pistol Or A Revolver In Space? – Space Facts

Can you shoot a gun in space? Yes, the ammunition or bullet is accelerated from the barrel just like on earth and then flies through space. On earth, ammunition is slowed down slightly by the atmosphere. The vacuum in space has no air molecules and therefore no braking effect on the shot ammunition. The penetration power of the fired bullet is therefore almost the same as on Earth.

The amount of recoil on whoever fires is also the same as on Earth. The difference, however, is that the person shooting moves through space in the opposite direction of the shot due to the recoil, which is also given after a shot on earth. Depending on how strong the shot is, the satellite would fly back according to the rate of momentum and the mass ratio. Since gravitational forces also act in space, the trajectory of the ball would also be curved.

Also Read: Will We Travel Through Space in the Future?

For example, if you shoot a small bullet from a heavy satellite with remote control, it only moves slightly in the opposite direction. However, the sphere does not lose any speed due to the vacuum in weightlessness and would either, depending on direction and speed, leave the area of attraction of the earth or otherwise fly around in an orbit for an infinite amount of time as dangerous space junk. In contrast, the so-called residual atmosphere is present in orbits close to the earth. That would mean that the ammunition fired there would gradually slow down, sink and ultimately burn up in the atmosphere.

Weapons In Space? – What Happens If You Shoot A Gun Or Blast A Bomb In Space?

However, shooting in space is not permitted. With a ‘Treaty on the principles governing the activities of states in the exploration and use of space, including the moon and other celestial bodies’, the signatory states have committed themselves to use the ‘moon and other celestial bodies For peaceful purposes’.

The establishment of military bases, installations, and fortifications, the testing of weapons of any kind, and the implementation of military exercises are prohibited. If all states adhere to this agreement, there will be no shots in space in the future either.

Also Read: How Would We Die In Space?

By the way, you might ask where the oxygen that is needed to create a combustion-based explosion in space, comes from. No oxygen from the environment is required for detonating explosives or burning powder. The oxygen required for the chemical reaction is contained in the chemical composition of the explosive or powder.