OUTLAND
A team of forensic scientists from Staffordshire University and the University of Hull have been collaborating with an American crime scene investigator to develop the new discipline of Astroforensics for investigating potential off-world crime. Using the Zero Gravity Corporation’s modified Boeing 727 parabolic aircraft, also known as “the vomit comet”, to simulate zero gravity, they have been investigating how blood splatters might form in space. Researchers used a mixture of 40% glycerine and 60% food colouring to simulate the relative density and viscosity of human blood, then squirted droplets from a hydraulic syringe toward a target during periods of reduced gravity of between 0.00 and 0.05g and reconstructed the angle of impact. Zack Kowalske, the US Crime Scene Investigator on the project says, “Studying bloodstain patterns can provide valuable…
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Fortean Times (Digital) - 1 Issue, 452