Reflecting on Space Benefits: A Shining Example

NASA has long been known for having developed the thin, shiny reflective material used to insulate everything from the Hubble Space Telescope to hikers, from the Mars rovers to marathon runners, from computers to campers, from satellites to sun shields, and from rockets to residences. It is one of the simplest, yet most versatile spinoffs to come out of the Agency. The insulating material, a strong, plastic, vacuum-metallized film with a highly-efficient, infrared-reflective, vapor-deposited coating of aluminum, was created to be very lightweight in order to minimize weight impact on vehicle payload while also protecting spacecraft, equipment, and personnel from the extreme temperature fluctuations of space. It has been employed on virtually all manned and unmanned NASA missions. The shiny insulation which coated the base of the Apollo lunar landing vehicles is perhaps one of the most memorable early displays of this technology, and the bright, reflective honeycomb on the James Webb Space Telescope prototype is a testament to its lasting usefulness.