It is rumored that the Americans spent hundreds of millions of dollars researching space pens, while the Russians did not spend a penny to use pencils. Is this true?

There is a widely circulated story:

The U.S. aerospace department was preparing to send astronauts into space for the first time, but they soon received reports that the astronauts were using ballpoint pens in weightlessness. , the pen can't write at all. So, it took them 10 years and $12 billion to finally invent a new type of ballpoint pen. This kind of pen is suitable for weightlessness, standing upside down, in water, and any flat object. It can write fluently even at minus 300 degrees Celsius. And the Russians have been using pencils in space. ”

This story wants to tell people that sometimes seemingly complex problems actually have very simple ready-made solutions. This is of course very educational, but it is a pity that it is fabricated. To sum up this Errors in the story:

1. American astronauts also used pencils

2. Pencils are not suitable for use in space. The sharp tip is dangerous and flammable and produces graphite when writing. Residues can easily enter the chest and eyes of astronauts, and can easily short-circuit electronic equipment (graphite is a good conductor).

3. The space pen was invented by a private company and is said to cost more than two million US dollars.

4. This space pen can not only be used in weightlessness, but also in extreme temperatures.

5. The weightless pen not only uses nitrogen to generate pressure, The ink and pen tip were also reformed so that the pen would not leak when not writing.

6. After the space pen was invented, both NASA and the Russian Space Agency purchased it.

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7. There is no environment like minus 300 degrees Celsius (0 degrees Kelvin cannot reach -300 degrees Celsius). This fabricated story itself has scientific errors.

Early astronauts were all wrong. The reason for using pencils is not because I accepted the advice of elementary school students, but because pens and ballpoint pens cannot be used under weightless conditions. Pencils are the only option. However, pencil leads sometimes break and float in a weightless environment. If it gets into the nose, eyes, or floats into electrical appliances, it can cause a short circuit and become a dangerous product. In addition, pencil leads and wood can easily burn in a pure oxygen environment.

Because of the invention of the ballpoint pen. Paul Fisher, who made a fortune from universal pen refills, realized the urgency for astronauts to use safe and reliable writing instruments, and spent his own money to develop it. After spending two years and about two million yuan, in 1965 In 2006, a ballpoint pen that can be used in space environment - the space pen was developed. The principle is very simple. It uses a sealed air pressure pen core and the upper part is filled with nitrogen (nitrogen is an inactive gas and will not support combustion under normal conditions). The gas pressure pushed the ink towards the pen tip. After rigorous testing, Fisher sold 400 space pens to NASA in December 1967. p>

On July 20, 1969, the Space Pen followed Armstrong and Aldrin to the moon and saved their lives. Armstrong and Aldrin completed a historic walk on the lunar surface and returned to the moon. When the cabin was preparing to leave, they found that the plastic manual switch of the engine was broken by the spacesuit's backpack, and they could not start the engine. They asked the ground command center for help. They needed to toggle a small metal strip in the switch. In order to reduce the weight, they had abandoned everything. An engineer at the ground command center had an idea and suggested that they try using a space pen. Aldrin took out the space pen, retracted the refill, and flipped the switch with the hollow end of the pen, successfully activating the login. The engine of the lunar module.

The space pen is an all-weather ballpoint pen. In addition to the space environment, it can also be used in various other extremely harsh conditions (such as cold mountains and deep seabeds), such as oil and moisture. , rough and smooth surface, and suitable for writing at various angles, with a service life of decades, and is very popular among mountaineers, outdoor activities, mechanics, soldiers, and police. Currently, you can buy the simplest Fisher Space Pen for $8 in the US market.

The strange thing is that this legendary space pen has become the subject of rumors, ridiculed and a symbol of stupidity. Some people say that it is completely unnecessary for Americans to spend huge sums of money to develop space pens. It is better to simply use pencils like the former Soviet astronauts (in fact, the former Soviet astronauts also later switched to Fisher space pens). Others simply say that a space pen has never been developed. Some newspapers have also published jokes such as "American scientists spent huge sums of money to research space pens but never thought of using pencils." Space pens are also available in the Chinese market. You can find them by searching online. Space pens are no longer exclusive to astronauts. Ordinary people can also use these space pens.