Can You Have Sex In Space? Reproduction Key To Humans Living On Mars

Nobody has had sex in space. That’s NASA’s official line, anyway.

But if NASA is serious about establishing a human colony on Mars, then, as Daft Punk sang in slightly different words, those Martian colonists will have to get lucky.

Because of the lack of gravity in outer space, having sex would be difficult. For one, space sex might trigger motion sickness. And it’s a tough task to stay connected — a kiss was difficult enough in a zero gravity simulator, writer Vanna Bonta told NBC News in 2006. All things considered, sex in space would be, well, hard.

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But the logistics of moving bodies are only the tip, so to speak, when it comes to the complications of having sex in space. The discussion resurfaced Tuesday after a report from FiveThirtyEight that focused more on the possibility of reproduction rather than sex — and it found that reproducing in space might be more complex than humans realized.

First, there’s the issue of radiation. When subatomic particles crash into DNA, they can damage it, resulting in genetic mutations or cancer. And when people have children, those mutations could be passed along.

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Second, microgravity could have effects on human bodies that aren’t well understood. When mice were sent to the International Space Station seven years ago, some of those mice stopped ovulating. Others lost a structure that forms in the ovary after the egg is released. Of course, scientists don’t know whether humans would be affected in the same way. But if there is any possibility that humans respond similarly, both effects could spell bad news for pregnancy.

This hardly is the first time the topic of sex in outer space has caught curious minds trapped by gravity on planet Earth. Ten years ago, Slate asked about sex in space, adding the observation, “In space, no one can hear you moan.” And in 1992, after a married astronaut couple headed to space and speculation flew, a headline from the Orlando Sentinel newspaper kept the topic as G-rated as possible: “NASA: No Orbital Hanky-Panky For Husband And Wife Astronauts.”