Aerogel

Facts about aerogel:

1. Aerogel is 99.8% air and 0.2% silica dioxide.
2. It has the lowest density of any substance known to man.
3. 1000 times less dense than glass
4. It can provide 39 times more insulation than fiberglass
5. It weighs 3 milligrams per cubic centimeter.
6. It can support 4000 times its own weight.
7. Discovered in 1930 by Samuel S. Kistler.
8. 1940 it was marketed commercially, but wasn't used for scientific purposes until 1980.
9. It has a honeycomb structure.
10. Particles are so fine that they can scratch your cornea.

At the Jet Propulsion Laboratory, we were shown lots of materials that are used in creating the spacecrafts. When building these space crafts, it is important to consider weight and sustainability. Weight is important because it costs money to send this space craft into the air, and the heavier it is, the more difficult it is to launch. Aerogel has been a great option for engineers, serving two important purposes:

1. Aerogel is an exceptional insulator. Used inside the Mars Exploration Rovers aerogel was a thermal insulator for batteries, electronics, computer in the chassis, and and warm electrical box. It also protects the space crafts from the cold of outer space. It is incredibly light, so it keeps the weight of the vehicle down and is a better option than fiberglass.

2. In 1997, NASA launched STARDUST, a space craft that flew through Comet Wild 2. The purpose of the mission was to collect particles from the comet. The extremely fine microstructures of the aerogel structure were able to capture dust particles with minimal damage and return them to earth to study. Since aerogel is made up of only 0.2% silica dioxide, it was easier for scientists to determine what particles actually came from the comet.



sources: http://stardust.jpl.nasa.gov/aerogel_factsheet.pdf