How strong is the vacuum in space?

Answer 1

A vacuum is nothing, an absence of any mass. There are no absolute vacuums; even in space between the planets, there is a barely measurable amount of gas, generally hydrogen gas. We expect to find that far out from the Sun, between the stars, that there is even less mass, and that in the gulfs between galaxies, there is even LESS.

A vacuum has no power, no "strength". You may be trying to compare it to a vacuum cleaner on Earth, where the difference is between the "vacuum" and normal atmospheric pressure. Here on Earth, at sea level, the pressure of the atmosphere is 14.7 pounds per square inch, or "psi". A typical vacuum hose is about 1.5 inches in diameter, or with a cross-sectional area of pi*r^2, or about .75^2*3.14, or about 2 square inches. (Numbers rounded off because I'm too lazy to launch my calculator program.) So a "perfect" vacuum cleaner - capable of generating a vacuum of space - could pick up about 30 pounds, or about 3 Bowling balls.

Answer 2

Vacuum has no strength. It is only a vacuum in the presence of pressure that

gives it any force. For example: At sea level, (at 15˚ C) a perfect vacuum

would raise Mercury to a height of 29.92 inches. But atop Chomolungma (Mt.

Everest) that perfect vacuum wouldn't be able to lift mercury more than 10

inches, and on our moon, a perfect vacuum wouldn't be able to raise the

mercury at all.

Put a straw into a bottle that's completely air-tight except for the straw.

No matter how hard you draw through the straw, even with an industrial-

strength vacuum pump, you can't lift any water out of the bottle. That's

only possible if air-pressure can act on the water in the bottle, to push

the water into the space that you remove the air from.