Self-Repairing Spacecraft

[FLO]

Sat, 21 Jan 2006

After launch, spacecraft are on their own. They have no way to repair damage from the tiny micrometeorites that inevitably chip away at them. But now researchers at ESA are working on a protective seal that could give spacecraft a self-healing mechanism. This seal is made of glass fibres containing an adhesive material. Once a meteorite pierces the glass coating, the liquid adhesive and a separate hardener flow out to seal the wound and then turn solid.

http://tinyurl.com/aqays