A material so black you can't see it..

[Guest]

Gotta get some of this for flocking the Dob LOL

http://www.independent.co.uk/news/science/blackest-is-the-new-black-scientists-have-developed-a-material-so-dark-that-you-cant-see-it-9602504.html

[Dave_D]

well here's one sad old goth astronomer willing to test this little beauty out 

i actually have a black t-shirt with black lettering that says 'I only wear black until they invent something darker'

and so, it has arrived 

[StuartJPP]

So why isn't there a picture of it in the article then?

[tekkydave]

I saw this on the news this morning and immediately thought "flocking"

[Alien 13]

If it absorbs all light it must get very warm in daylight.

Alan

[pete_l]

If it absorbs all light it must get very warm in daylight.

Alan

Not only that:

he said it would be "very expensive"

So it absorbs all money, too.

[D4N]

I think it stated 0.035% reflective, but yeh the energy has to go somewhere so it's gonna get warm.

Money absorbent is pretty much standard for astronomy gear >.<

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[russ.will]

well here's one sad old goth astronomer

There's a happy one?

Russell

[russ.will]

At 7.5x the thermal conductivity of copper and ten times the strength of steel, that is going to make a very light telescope that cools very quickly. It also strikes me that not only would it be possible to make a complete hash of flocking as you can't see what you're doing with it. The corollary is that nobody would be able to tell!

I wonder if Wilkinsons will stock it?

Russell

[Dave_D]

There's a happy one?

Russell

contrary to popular opinion, us oldschool (early 80's) Goths are a bunch of party animals   the mopey oiks are the late 90's - early 00's riff-raff which we don't consider real Goths 

[DaveGarland]

Did anyone else read this and think of the "Acme Portable Hole" from the Roadrunner?

[jimmyjamjoejoe]

Made me think of the ship in the hitchikers guide - so dark and sleek that even your gaze would slip right off of it

[12dstring]

I think it stated 0.035% reflective, but yeh the energy has to go somewhere so it's gonna get warm.

Not significantly warmer than other dark materials.

Simple black acrylic paint is about 5% reflective, and this material would only absorb a little over 5% more energy than that. You probably wouldn't really notice the temperature difference (and that's ignoring the increased thermal conductivity),

[Naemeth]

Perhaps Black Holes are just another species throwing loads of this away because they have so much for their telescopes that they don't want anymore material .

[Macavity]

A re-release of Metallica's "Black" Album?

Still awaiting my "cloak of invisibility" though...

[Scott]

contrary to popular opinion, us oldschool (early 80's) Goths are a bunch of party animals   the mopey oiks are the late 90's - early 00's riff-raff which we don't consider real Goths 

I thought real goths were 800 yrs old

[Alien 13]

Now if they could make a similar material that transmits 100% of the light with zero reflection that would be good if only you could find it once you had put it down.

Alan

[Stevp]

Nice! Ok so it may take a few years but the optical equipment of the future may well get this tech!

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[L8-Nite]

It be great for street light shields.     

[michaeldurban]

I think...yes...

It's my ex's soul...

[DaveGarland]

There's a point! This is now yet another thread with mention of my mother-in-law!

[Dave_D]

I thought real goths were 800 yrs old

you should hear how old my kids say i am... 

[Dave_D]

Got an email from the vantablack people today...

'Please note however, that Vantablack® has been developed to address a number of highly specialised applications. The coating is formed from a nanostructure array and as such is not suitable for consumer goods, or handling by the general public – despite what the global press may have suggested.

In particular, the material is currently only suitable for coating surfaces that are not normally exposed to the elements (i.e. rain or snow) or to human contact, any of which are likely to damage the material's optical properties. It also carries a UK government export restriction, so can only be supplied to corporate users or research labs that the UK government deems appropriate.'

Ho-hum...

[LukeSkywatcher]

This looks like the results i got the last time i baked a cake:

[D4N]

This looks like the results i got the last time i baked a cake:

Any luck flocking your scope with it?

TSED70Q, iOptron Smart EQ pro, ASI-120MM, Finepix S5 pro.