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##   How long does it take to cook a turkey in space?

      By Astrogeology Science Center      November 22, 2023    

As we get together this holiday season and prepare our turkey feasts, we’ve been pondering life on other planets and moons. What would it be like to cook a turkey on Venus or Jupiter’s moon, Io? We asked scientists at Astrogeology who work with thermal remote sensing instruments to weigh in on whether they could cook a turkey on certain planetary bodies, including places at home.

Disclaimer: Do not attempt cooking in any of the locations or methods described below. This is only for fun, and we are trained professionals with experience in high-temperature lava and fluid flow dynamics.

## How do you cook a turkey?

To start, we’re going to need to set some parameters. Although it’s possible to cook a turkey at lower temperatures for longer and there are a wide variety of ways to cook turkeys (weigh in on your favorites!), we’re going to have to set some limits. Let’s assume we’re going to cook a turkey at 325°F (165°C) for 3 hours. That means that the temperature of the atmosphere/surface of our planetary body must be approximately stable at near this temperature for about 3 hours. Let’s see where to take our turkeys!

## Could you cook a turkey at Yellowstone National Park?

Note: do not attempt and follow all guidelines of Yellowstone National Park and surrounding natural areas.

The highest surface temperatures at hot springs or gas vents in Yellowstone are usually around boiling, which is 93°C (199°F) at the elevation there.

Remote Sensing Lead at Yellowstone Volcano Observatory, Dr. Greg Vaughan, was able to give a few ideas on how a bird could be braised in these toxic conditions.

For context, only a few super-heated fumaroles (volcanic vents) have ever been measured in the park– the hottest one, called Phantom Fumarole, was measured at 138°C (280°F).

“I suppose you could cook a steamed turkey at Phantom Fumarole, but it would take a long time and *might*taste like rotten eggs due to the hydrogen sulfide (H2S) that is mixed with the steam,” Dr. Vaughan said. A more conventional style of cooking as opposed to open-air volcanic rotisserie comes to mind, as Dr. Vaughan said, “The other possibility might be to bury the turkey in a Dutch oven and cook it like that. I'm not sure how deep you'd have to bury it, but in some thermal areas you might be able to find the proper turkey-cooking temperature of 163°C (325°F) at just a few meters or tens of meters deep.

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Dr. Rumpf has worked with data from the Magellan mission, which peered through Venus’ thick clouds using radar to look at its surface. “Cooking a turkey on Venus would be like cooking it in the worst pressure cooker ever. The temperature at the surface is about 865°F (462°C) and the pressure is 95 bars about the same as being under 1 km of ocean! Pressure cookers on Earth cook things by increasing the pressure to 2 bars and the temperature to ~250°F (121°C). The pressure and temperature are so extreme, that when the specially designed Venera 8 spacecraft landed on the surface in 1972, it only lasted for about an hour before being destroyed. So, a turkey on the surface of Venus would be charred and crushed within minutes of exposure. On the bright side, this might make it into turkey jerky and the sulfur in the atmosphere would help preserve it. So, really, Venus would turn your turkey into really gross jerky!”

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## Moon turkey to go with the Moon cheese

Physical Scientist Lori Pigue works with the Diviner Lunar Radiometer Experiment (Diviner) onboard the Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter. Diviner has been taking thermal images of the Moon since 2009, which has allowed us to take temperature measurements near continuously over the entire lunar surface for years. The Moon doesn’t have a thick atmosphere like Earth, which insulates our surface and protects us from the harsh conditions of space. That means the Moon has extreme temperature swings, from extremely high maximum daytime temperatures to extremely low minimum nighttime temperatures.

“Well, ignoring that the water is likely going to instantly vaporize, you’ll wind up with a pretty dry turkey no matter what, and it’ll be pretty hard to find a suitable temperature to cook your turkey,” Dr. Pigue explains. “You’ll want to make sure it’s in a container for cooking because the intense cosmic and solar radiation will leave the skin crispy before internal layers even get warm.”

Temperatures on the Moon reach as high as 278°F (136°C), which would be unbearably hot to live, but not a good temperature to cook a turkey. This is a maximum daytime temperature, which is essentially the high temperature for a day. It doesn’t stay this temperature for long, and since there isn’t an atmosphere to keep the heat in, it’s very likely that the temperature will start to drop quickly as the afternoon and evening set in.

Now, let’s head deeper into the solar system for our last turkey.

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## Turkey from Hell: Cooking a Turkey on Jupiter’s moon, Io

Io is the most volcanically active body in our solar system, so heat is plentiful. But there are some special challenges to deal with as well. Research Geologist Laszlo Kestay has some experience cooking with lava during his years working with eruptions on Kilauea Volcano, Hawaii (note: do not attempt, and do not try to approach active lava flows). It turns out active flowing lava is too hot. “When I tried to cook popcorn, the layer closest to the lava burned, some in the middle popped, but the ones on top didn’t heat up,” explained Laszlo. “I did manage to nicely cook a steak by hanging it into a crack with glowing lava at the bottom,” continued Dr. Kestay. So, if you can find a natural oven-shaped volcanic vent (called a hornito by geologists), you could be in luck. Of course, trying to get the turkey into (and out of) an active volcanic vent could be a bit exciting and involve singeing some eyebrows.

Perhaps you can cook on a volcano, but Io poses some extra challenges. There is no atmosphere other than whiffs of poisonous acidic volcanic gasses. These should impart a lovely sulfurous odor and taste to your turkey. Away from the hot lava, it is extremely cold, nearly as cold as liquid nitrogen. So, your turkey will freeze solid on the table and shatter when you try to carve it. But you won’t want to have a long dinner anyway, since the intense radiation of high energy particles accelerated by Jupiter’s magnetic field will kill you rather quickly. Still, it would be an awesome sight, with Jupiter’s swirling storm clouds looming huge in the sky and a snow of sulfur dioxide falling out of giant umbrella-shaped volcanic plumes.

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##### Hell with a view!

 

 

 

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