What critical factor determines the survival time of an ice cube outside the International Space Station, beyond just the average solar energy?
Answer
The directionality of solar heating causing extreme thermal gradients.
The directionality of solar heating is critical; the sunlit side can reach temperatures around 300 K, while the shadowed side radiates heat into space, cooling to temperatures where sublimation is extremely slow, leading to unequal vaporization rates across the surface.
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