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RoomyPockets t1_jdu2v9s wrote

Just a technicality: the air is blown into space, not sucked into space. It's the internal pressure of the air that causes it to rapidly expand into the vacuum. As to whether it will take you out with it, that's down to how big the hole is. If left unchecked, the air will keep escaping until there's a vacuum left inside the ship.

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ThePufferfishJeff t1_jdv47x2 wrote

Double technicality here: sucked would still work since the mechanics of sucking is to create a vacuum in one area making a pressure gradient that pushes things into the vacuum.

For example when you suck in air into your lungs you actually just expand your lungs leaving an area of low pressure that forces and shoves it's way into them filling them up. Since the mechanics are the same id argue that suck would be fine in this use

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OneFutureOfMany t1_jdvumb4 wrote

How people conceptualize it is slightly different depending on the wording, I'd say.

The example above... if you were at the far end of the station from the hole, you'd feel close to nothing except the air leaving you. There is no "suck" feeling.

When many/most people think of "sucking" they sort of envision a force that would permeate the internal structure and suck at everything.

Instead, talking about the atmosphere "pushing", it's intuitively obvious that if you're at the far bulkhead, you feel almost no force.

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ZZ9ZA t1_jdykvrt wrote

How hard would it be to block, say, a dime sized hole, at least partially? Would something like a sheet of (coated) paper at least but you a few minutes?

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MasterPatricko t1_jdyne1i wrote

Quite easy. Atmospheric pressure = 14psi (pounds per square inch) = 100000 Pascal = 10 Newtons / centimeter^2.

The total force acting over a dime-sized hole is about 10 Newtons or the equivalent weight of a ~2-pound object on earth. Paper or thin card might tear but a piece of strong multilayer corrugated cardboard should be fine. Might need to give it some help sealing (glue or something) too.

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ZZ9ZA t1_jdyxws8 wrote

It’s more the seal I’m thinking of… like, if it starts to bow out, then it starts getting either squeezed through the hole or something.

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