

OK, we've all seen it countless times in science fiction films and TV shows. The captain gets wise to the bad guy and tosses him into the cold, vast vacuum of space to die. Or the hero is given a burial-at-space and her flag-draped casket is released out of the space ship. Or President Roslyn learns that you're a frakking Cylon and tosses you out of the airlock. ;-)



Here's my question: after the bad guy dies, what happens to his body and space suit? It's in a vacuum, so there are no forces to cause it to deteriorate, correct? Does it float until it loses its momentum, so it just sits in space forever? Provided it doesn't get snatched by the gravity of a large or moving mass, it'll just be there forever, right?

Lost in space... forever? What happens after you're tossed out of the airlock?