Silica aerogel for capturing intact interplanetary dust particles for the Tanpopo experiment

Orig Life Evol Biosph. 2015 Jun;45(1-2):225-9. doi: 10.1007/s11084-015-9423-8. Epub 2015 Mar 21.

Abstract

In this paper, we report the progress in developing a silica-aerogel-based cosmic dust capture panel for use in the Tanpopo experiment on the International Space Station (ISS). Previous studies revealed that ultralow-density silica aerogel tiles, comprising two layers with densities of 0.01 and 0.03 g/cm(3) developed using our production technique, were suitable for achieving the scientific objectives of the astrobiological mission. A special density configuration (i.e., box framing) aerogel with a holder was designed to construct the capture panels. Qualification tests for an engineering model of the capture panel as an instrument aboard the ISS were successful. Sixty box-framing aerogel tiles were manufactured in a contamination-controlled environment.

Publication types

  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

  • Cosmic Dust / analysis*
  • Exobiology / methods*
  • Silica Gel / chemistry*
  • Spacecraft

Substances

  • Cosmic Dust
  • Silica Gel