Has anything made of WOOD ever been sent into space?

**Mr. X** · 2001-Oct-25, 04:15 PM

Has anything made of WOOD ever been sent into space? Not necessarily for an experiment in microgravity, but in contact with outer space, but maybe in the structure of an old space ship?

Just wanted to know.

**Karl** · 2001-Oct-25, 04:38 PM

Does paper count?

**Mr. X** · 2001-Oct-25, 04:52 PM

On 2001-10-25 12:38, Karl wrote:
Does paper count?

Um... no, it does not!

Well, it would, but as long as it was not used for writing! Or some other pointless use, like paper cups, coffee filters and the like. Or air filters. Or a cardboard box that happened to be sent in the shuttle by mistake.

I feel like I'll have to be a lawyer with you! [img]/phpBB/images/smiles/icon_biggrin.gif[/img]

[ This Message was edited by: Mr. X on 2001-10-25 12:58 ]

**Valiant Dancer** · 2001-Oct-25, 05:01 PM

On 2001-10-25 12:15, Mr. X wrote:
Has anything made of WOOD ever been sent into space? Not necessarily for an experiment in microgravity, but in contact with outer space, but maybe in the structure of an old space ship?

Just wanted to know.

The soviet union used pencils. While our government wasted hundreds of thousands of dollars developing a pen that works in zero-G, the soviets brought pencils.

_________________

Valiant Dancer

[ This Message was edited by: Valiant Dancer on 2001-10-25 13:02 ]

**Mr. X** · 2001-Oct-25, 05:12 PM

Oh my god. The sheer idiocy of humans has just hit me.

They must have been trying to write with those fancy pens that have that feather like tip. Or feathers ("How do you keep the ink in the bottle!?" they kept asking). Or ballpens. I think even a stupid marker would work.

If they wanted to show they had more budget they could have just sent mechanical pencils! Around 1 dollar each. But if you wanted to erase! The little things it makes would surely clog the instruments!

Has anyone at NASA ever though of throwing a small piece of wood in space to see what happens to it?

**SporkWarrior** · 2001-Oct-25, 05:53 PM

> The soviet union used pencils. While our government wasted hundreds of
> thousands of dollars developing a pen that works in zero-G, the soviets brought pencils.

Oh please. This is a classic example of distorting facts to make some blurb used in management meetings to emphasize the point of thinking outside the box.

One, the Fisher Space Pen, as it is called was not commissioned by NASA. Paul Fisher, on his own initiative, designed the space pen. Why? He realized that pencils are combustible and if they break, that leaves small particles of graphite floating around in the capsule. Not too good for the eyes or the instrumentation. NASA in no way paid millions of dollars to create this pen.

And if you don't believe me, check out Snopes.com

**Mr. X** · 2001-Oct-25, 07:02 PM

On 2001-10-25 13:53, SporkWarrior wrote:
> The soviet union used pencils. While our government wasted hundreds of
> thousands of dollars developing a pen that works in zero-G, the soviets brought pencils.

Oh please. This is a classic example of distorting facts to make some blurb used in management meetings to emphasize the point of thinking outside the box.

One, the Fisher Space Pen, as it is called was not commissioned by NASA. Paul Fisher, on his own initiative, designed the space pen. Why? He realized that pencils are combustible and if they break, that leaves small particles of graphite floating around in the capsule. Not too good for the eyes or the instrumentation. NASA in no way paid millions of dollars to create this pen.

And if you don't believe me, check out Snopes.com

Thanks SporkWarrior! But what about my question? WOOD IN SPACE! And NO pencils! Or paper! No writing gear! No coffee filters, no air filters, no paper cups, no discarded cardboard boxes left by error in the shuttle! Wood with a real use!

Fisher spent over one million dollars in trying to perfect the ball point pen before he made his first successful pressurized pens in 1965. Samples were immediately sent to Dr. Robert Gilruth, Manager of the Houston Space Center, where they were thoroughly tested and approved for use in Space in September 1965. In December 1967 he sold 400 Fisher Space Pens to NASA for $2.95 each.

The point stands however, because I don't know what that guy Fisher was thinking. Assuming he spent that 1 000 000$ and managed to sell 400 to NASA for 2,95$ each doesn't that leave him minus 998 820$? He might have sold more of those but at 2,95 doesn't that mean he needed to sell about 338 983 pens, now he sold 400, so that leaves 338 583 to just compensate for what he has spent.

Assuming it comes packaged in a 1,5 centimeter by 1,5 centimeter by 25 centimeter box, it means that all those pens would take 19 067 793,75 cm^3 and since 1 km^3 = 1 000 000 cm^3 that would mean roughly 19,1 km^3 of space for all those pens he needed to sell to just compensate. I don't know if NASA has filled all its warehouses with boxes of space pens and since the pen had less than stellar sales on the market, he must have blackmailed a lot of people to force NASA into buying 19,1 cubic kilometers of space pens. And 1 000 000$ is just for his research. He has people that needed to be paid, a production that needed to be paid, so he probably needed to sell a lot more than that to stay in business (and they did). It must be hell moving in NASA offices, submerged in an enormous quantity of space pens.

I suspect that the international space station is a cover up to be able to send shuttles that should be unloaded in space, packing them full of space pens and dumping them where they rightfully belong: in space.

Laughing yet? [img]/phpBB/images/smiles/icon_biggrin.gif[/img]

Now let's just WATCH an idiot barge in here saying something along the lines of "Your numbers are inaccurate, as the space pen box is..." [img]/phpBB/images/smiles/icon_razz.gif[/img]

Let's just stick to wood in space shall we! [img]/phpBB/images/smiles/icon_smile.gif[/img]

[ This Message was edited by: Mr. X on 2001-10-25 15:47 ]

**Wiley** · 2001-Oct-25, 07:38 PM

Mr. X,

Why do you wish to know if wood has been used in Space? I think we need a new category: Trivial Astronomy. [img]/phpBB/images/smiles/icon_smile.gif[/img]

SporkWarrior,

Bacteria causes milk to spoil. Since we have no evidence of space-borne bacteria, we should not be surprised the Milky Way has yet to become the Cheesy Way. [img]/phpBB/images/smiles/icon_smile.gif[/img]

**Azpod** · 2001-Oct-25, 08:06 PM

Hey, aren't they testing various materials on the ISS? Basically it's a panel hanging outside of the station composed of various tiles to see what happens to them when exposed to the rigors of space (solar radiation, micrometeroids, urine dumps, et cetera.)

I don't think it's the case, but does anyone know if a type of wood is one of them...?

I think that's what he's driving at. *shrug*

**Mr. X** · 2001-Oct-25, 08:08 PM

On 2001-10-25 15:38, Wiley wrote:
Mr. X,

Why do you wish to know if wood has been used in Space? I think we need a new category: Trivial Astronomy. [img]/phpBB/images/smiles/icon_smile.gif[/img]

SporkWarrior,

Bacteria causes milk to spoil. Since we have no evidence of space-borne bacteria, we should not be surprised the Milky Way has yet to become the Cheesy Way. [img]/phpBB/images/smiles/icon_smile.gif[/img]

Better yet! THE CHEEZ WHIZ (tm) way! Of course, owned by Kraft (tm) which is a Philip Morris (tm) company! [img]/phpBB/images/smiles/icon_smile.gif[/img]

**The Curtmudgeon** · 2001-Oct-25, 08:56 PM

And here all this time I thought it was the Moon that was made of (green) cheese....

The (and about those pen boxes...) Curtmudgeon

**Karl** · 2001-Oct-25, 09:08 PM

Balsa wood was used on the Ranger project.

http://www.airspacemag.com/ASM/Mag/I...7/JJ/hdld.html

I remember reading about this in National Geographic many years ago.

**Mr. X** · 2001-Oct-25, 09:47 PM

Thanks a lot Karl! That is VERY cool indeed! [img]/phpBB/images/smiles/icon_cool.gif[/img]

Any more uses for wood in space?

**Phobos** · 2001-Oct-25, 09:50 PM

Didn't a guy called Noah send a wooden spaceship into space stuffed full of animals when the icecaps last melted ??

Jeff [img]/phpBB/images/smiles/icon_smile.gif[/img]

**Mr. X** · 2001-Oct-25, 11:31 PM

On 2001-10-25 17:50, Phobos wrote:
Didn't a guy called Noah send a wooden spaceship into space stuffed full of animals when the icecaps last melted ??

Jeff [img]/phpBB/images/smiles/icon_smile.gif[/img]

Quite right Jeff. Unfortunately his ship was improperly shielded from radiations, and cross-breeding from llamas, elephants, camels, pigs, cows, girafes and humans has yielded the current population of the Earth.

Shame on Noah for unleashing such atrocities on our planet. [img]/phpBB/images/smiles/icon_razz.gif[/img]

**ToSeek** · 2001-Oct-26, 12:05 PM

On 2001-10-25 15:02, Mr. X wrote:

The point stands however, because I don't know what that guy Fisher was thinking. Assuming he spent that 1 000 000$ and managed to sell 400 to NASA for 2,95$ each doesn't that leave him minus 998 820$? He might have sold more of those but at 2,95 doesn't that mean he needed to sell about 338 983 pens, now he sold 400, so that leaves 338 583 to just compensate for what he has spent.

I used to own a Fisher space pen. There were lots of ads for them in the space magazines, and I'm sure I'm not the only space nut who bought one. ("Use the same pen that the astronauts used!") Better than Tang, for sure.

**ToSeek** · 2001-Oct-26, 12:06 PM

There were plans on the Ranger unmanned probes that crashed into Mars to have a wooden ball with instruments inside be released as part of the probe and make it to the surface. The wood was balsa, so it would take the force of the impact, and then the instruments would set to work. But with all of the problems with the Rangers (the first six failed), this scheme was never put into practice.

**brianok** · 2001-Oct-26, 12:17 PM

What about the flag planted on the moon, was it on a wooden flagpole?

**Mr. X** · 2001-Oct-26, 12:26 PM

On 2001-10-26 08:05, ToSeek wrote:
I used to own a Fisher space pen. There were lots of ads for them in the space magazines, and I'm sure I'm not the only space nut who bought one. ("Use the same pen that the astronauts used!") Better than Tang, for sure.

Okay, are you sure you read my ENTIRE post? [img]/phpBB/images/smiles/icon_biggrin.gif[/img] [img]/phpBB/images/smiles/icon_biggrin.gif[/img] [img]/phpBB/images/smiles/icon_biggrin.gif[/img]

Not quite the pen boxes but close enough. [img]/phpBB/images/smiles/icon_biggrin.gif[/img] [img]/phpBB/images/smiles/icon_biggrin.gif[/img] [img]/phpBB/images/smiles/icon_lol.gif[/img] [img]/phpBB/images/smiles/icon_biggrin.gif[/img] [img]/phpBB/images/smiles/icon_razz.gif[/img]

**Mr. X** · 2001-Oct-26, 12:27 PM

On 2001-10-25 16:06, Azpod wrote:
Hey, aren't they testing various materials on the ISS? Basically it's a panel hanging outside of the station composed of various tiles to see what happens to them when exposed to the rigors of space (solar radiation, micrometeroids, urine dumps, et cetera.)

I don't think it's the case, but does anyone know if a type of wood is one of them...?

I think that's what he's driving at. *shrug*

You have more info in that panel, Azpod? It would help!

**ToSeek** · 2001-Oct-26, 03:03 PM

On 2001-10-26 08:17, brianok wrote:
What about the flag planted on the moon, was it on a wooden flagpole?

The flagpole was metal (made by the sheet metal shop at the Manned Spaceflight Center, now Johnson Space Center). More about the flag and flagpole:

http://spaceflight.nasa.gov/mars/ref...flag/flag.html

**ToSeek** · 2001-Oct-26, 03:04 PM

On 2001-10-25 17:08, Karl wrote:
Balsa wood was used on the Ranger project.

http://www.airspacemag.com/ASM/Mag/I...7/JJ/hdld.html

I remember reading about this in National Geographic many years ago.

But the same article indicates that the balsa was never actually used, just planned. By the time Ranger got its act together, the Surveyor program was underway, which made Ranger's efforts to get instruments to the surface unnecessary.

**ToSeek** · 2001-Oct-26, 03:11 PM

On 2001-10-25 16:06, Azpod wrote:
Hey, aren't they testing various materials on the ISS? Basically it's a panel hanging outside of the station composed of various tiles to see what happens to them when exposed to the rigors of space (solar radiation, micrometeroids, urine dumps, et cetera.)

I don't think it's the case, but does anyone know if a type of wood is one of them...?

I tried to do a couple of Internet searches to see if the Long Duration Exposure Facility (LDEF) released by the shuttle had any wood on it, but it looks like not.

**Azpod** · 2001-Oct-26, 05:57 PM

On 2001-10-26 08:27, Mr. X wrote:

On 2001-10-25 16:06, Azpod wrote:
Hey, aren't they testing various materials on the ISS? Basically it's a panel hanging outside of the station composed of various tiles to see what happens to them when exposed to the rigors of space (solar radiation, micrometeroids, urine dumps, et cetera.)

I don't think it's the case, but does anyone know if a type of wood is one of them...?

I think that's what he's driving at. *shrug*

You have more info in that panel, Azpod? It would help!

All I know is the story that briefly mentioned it in cnn.com-- http://www.cnn.com/2001/TECH/space/0...pha/index.html

Sadly, it doesn't include any links about the experiment where we can find out exactly what was included in it. [img]/phpBB/images/smiles/icon_evil.gif[/img]

**Mr. Wree** · 2001-Oct-27, 05:56 PM

Um, don't male astronauts sometimes when they wake up...ah, oh, nevermind.

**Mr. X** · 2001-Oct-28, 05:18 AM

On 2001-10-27 13:56, Mr. Wree wrote:
Um, don't male astronauts sometimes when they wake up...ah, oh, nevermind.

Huh? [img]/phpBB/images/smiles/icon_confused.gif[/img]

**GrapesOfWrath** · 2002-May-22, 01:30 PM

On 2001-10-28 01:18, Mr. X wrote:
Huh? [img]/phpBB/images/smiles/icon_confused.gif[/img]

Morning wood

On 2001-10-25 15:02, Mr. X wrote:
Assuming it comes packaged in a 1,5 centimeter by 1,5 centimeter by 25 centimeter box, it means that all those pens would take 19 067 793,75 cm^3 and since 1 km^3 = 1 000 000 cm^3 that would mean roughly 19,1 km^3 of space for all those pens he needed to sell to just compensate. I don't know if NASA has filled all its warehouses with boxes of space pens and since the pen had less than stellar sales on the market, he must have blackmailed a lot of people to force NASA into buying 19,1 cubic kilometers of space pens.

Whoa, back up. A cubic meter is equal to one million cubic centimeters. So, you would only have 19 cubic meters of space pens, not 19 cubic kilometers. There's only a third of a million of them, after all. I think my kids went through that many just last year.

Now let's just WATCH an idiot barge in here saying something along the lines of "Your numbers are inaccurate, as the space pen box is..."

Sorry. Guilty. [img]/phpBB/images/smiles/icon_smile.gif[/img]

**SiriMurthy** · 2002-May-22, 04:51 PM

On 2001-10-25 12:52, Mr. X wrote:

On 2001-10-25 12:38, Karl wrote:
Does paper count?

Um... no, it does not!

Well, it would, but as long as it was not used for writing! Or some other pointless use, like paper cups, coffee filters and the like. Or air filters. Or a cardboard box that happened to be sent in the shuttle by mistake.

I feel like I'll have to be a lawyer with you! [img]/phpBB/images/smiles/icon_biggrin.gif[/img]

[ This Message was edited by: Mr. X on 2001-10-25 12:58 ]

In that case, how about Dollar Bills? [img]/phpBB/images/smiles/icon_biggrin.gif[/img]

**SpacedOut** · 2002-May-22, 05:05 PM

On 2002-05-22 12:51, SiriMurthy wrote:
In that case, how about Dollar Bills? [img]/phpBB/images/smiles/icon_biggrin.gif[/img]

Dollar bills are made from rags - not wood. [img]/phpBB/images/smiles/icon_smile.gif[/img]

**SiriMurthy** · 2002-May-22, 05:28 PM

On 2002-05-22 13:05, SpacedOut wrote:

On 2002-05-22 12:51, SiriMurthy wrote:
In that case, how about Dollar Bills? [img]/phpBB/images/smiles/icon_biggrin.gif[/img]

Dollar bills are made from rags - not wood. [img]/phpBB/images/smiles/icon_smile.gif[/img]

I didn't know that. Why do we call it the "paper money"

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