What does space smell like?

It’s strange to think that the near-vacuum of space
could have a smell, and stranger still that humans — atmospheric
creatures — can actually experience it. Astronauts have consistently
reported the same strange odour after lengthy space walks, bringing it
back in on their suits, helmets, gloves and tools. Its bitter, smoky,
metallic smell — like seared steak, hot metal and arc welding smoke all
rolled into one. NASA have asked a chemist, Steve Pearce, to reproduce
the smell to use during acclimatization training, mapping out the likely
chemistry using natural materials to mimic the odor for accuracy. It’s
believed that the smell is caused by high-energy vibrations in particles
that mix with the air when brought inside. In the future, we might even
recreate the smell of the moon, Mars, Mercury or any place in the
universe, provided we have the right chemical information. In fact, we
can even recreate the smell of the heart of the galaxy — astronomers
searching for animo acids in Sagittarius B2, a vast dust cloud in the
middle of the Milky Way, have reported that due to a substance called
ethyl formate, it smells and tastes of raspberries and rum — much more
pleasant than seared steak and metal.