NASA Spinoffs
- David Benford
- Feb 20, 2016
- 3 min read
NASA is notorious for using advanced technologies to further their ability to explore the wonders of the universe. A lot of time, effort, and thought goes into the process of making such technologies - but, did you know that, a lot of that technology has been transferred into the civilian sector? Spin-off, "a secondary or incidental product or effecxt derived from technological development in a somewhat unrelated area."
Based off the website zidbits, these are the top 10 most commonly used NASA spinoffs in our culture today:
* Satellite Television - The technology used by NASA to better help with spacecraft signals is used in the civilian population to help correct scrambled picutres and sound received by satellite television signals.
* Memory Foam - If you have the money to purchase a memory foam, or, temper foam bed or pillow, you have NASA to thank for such wonderful sleep. Orginially developed in the 1970's, memory foam was initially made to "improve seat cushioning and crash protection for airline pilots and passengers (4)". Thank you NASA!
* Ear Thermometer - NASA uses infrared astronomy technology to measure the amount the temperature of stars and planets, which we now use to measure the energy emitted by the eardrum to take quick temperatures of babies and incapacitated patients.
* Invisible Braces - "Invisible braces are made of translucent polycrystalline alumina. A company called Ceradyne developed TPA in conjunction with NASA Advanced Ceramics Research to protect the infrared antennae of heat - seeking missile trackers. Another company, Unitek, was working on a new design for dental braces. They discovered that TPA would be strong enough to withstand use and is translucent, making it a prime material for invisible braces (4)."
* Scratch Resistant Lenses - The technology used to produce these scratch resistant lenses was originally designed to help protect astronaut's visors.
* Modern Insulation - When going into space, the protection needed to guard against radiation and heat was introduced by NASA using barriers made of "foil laid over a core of propylene or Mylar (4)" which in turn, is now used in home insulation.
* Cordless Tools - In 1963, Martin Marietta Corporation contracted with Black & Decker to design tools for NASA, which led to Black & Decker creating "...cordless lightweight battery powered presicion medical instruments and a cordless vacuum cleaner... (4). "
* Water Filters/Purification - The activated carbon filters and silver ions to clean water that we currently use in most homes today, was pioneered by NASA.
* Adjustable Smoke Detectors - NASA teamed up with the Honeywell Corporation to invent the, "first adjustable smoke dector with different sensitivity levels to prevent false alarms. (4)"
* Cat Scanners - To prepare for the Moon landings of the 1960's, NASA needed a way to find a safe spot to land amongst all the dust fields. In doing so, they "developed a scanning system using high-frequency sounds waves, magnets, and computers (4)." Today, we use that technology for ultrasounds, MRI's, and CAT-scans.
An 11th spin-off I would personally like to add would be the Global Positioning System, or, GPS. GPS was originally made in 1973 to, "overcome the limitations or perious navigation system (3)." For lack of better understanding, it was used at first to better measure the earths atmosphere. Today, when looking for a location anywhere in the world, Google Maps is probably your choice in apps for reaching the right location.
There are a ton of other spin-offs that have occured through NASA, and since 1976, a magazine by the name of Spinoff, complies a list of roughly 50 every year and sharing that information to anyone by use of their website, Spinoff, or downloadable PDF's.
Works Cited
1. NASA Spinoff
3. Prezi
4. Zidbits 2011
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