While it is not possible for humans to breathe room air at the risk of death, astronauts have reported detecting certain odors on their clothing upon returning to the space station after exploring space.
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In fact, several astronauts on Apollo missions to the moon, but also after leaving the International Space Station, reported smelling an odor similar to that of gunpowder, ozone – similar to the water from bleach – or even burnt steak, according to Space News This the website Space.com reported on Monday.
According to scientists, the smell of ozone (O3) could come from individual oxygen atoms clinging to spacewalks before being repressurized in the space cabin and combining with the surrounding air to form O3.
In the case of burnt meat, the smell could be explained by the presence of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), molecules found in burnt toast and grilled meat as well as in space, according to American media.
However, space would not always have the same smell: in 2014, the European Space Agency's Rosetta probe discovered numerous molecules around a comet that probably gave off a slight smell of rotten eggs, urine, sweet almonds and used formalin for disinfection or preservation of tissue.
In fact, according to Space.com, scientists have detected the presence of hydrogen sulfide, ammonia, hydrogen cyanide and formaldehyde in its gaseous halo.
The most surprising thing is that the gas surrounding the molecular cloud of gas and dust Sagittarius B2, almost 400 light-years from the center of the Milky Way, could give off a smell similar to… raspberry rum.
In fact, its cloud would contain a lot of alcohol, including vinyl alcohol, methanol and ethanol, which are found in wine, beer and spirits, as well as ethyl formate, which is responsible for the smell of rum and raspberry, the American media concluded.