Pen which can be used in space

The space pen's mark on the Apollo program was not limited to facilitating writing in microgravity. According to the Fisher Space Pen Company, the Apollo 11 astronauts also used the pen to fix a broken arming switch, enabling their return to Earth. Since the late s American astronauts and Russian cosmonauts have used Fisher's pens.

In fact, Fisher has created a whole line of space pens. Already a subscriber? Sign in. Thanks for reading Scientific American. Create your free account or Sign in to continue. See Subscription Options. Discover World-Changing Science. Get smart. Sign up for our email newsletter. Sign Up. Support science journalism. Once it had flown in space, Paul decided on the name Space Pen.

But my father was right, as he often was. The pens can are known in part for their reliability, but they also came to symbolize American ingenuity: at a time when NASA was struggling to overcome countless obstacles to put astronauts on the Moon, an inventor and small business owner stepped up and solved the pen problem.

While they are popular gift items, Cary said, they are especially in-demand among members of the military and law enforcement, as well as outdoor enthusiasts, plane manufacturers, and oil workers, all of whom, like astronauts, appreciate their ability to write in any conditions.

Fisher Pen Company has distributors in 52 countries but still makes all its pens in Boulder City, where more than 60 employees turn out over a million pens a year. Credit: Fisher Pen Company. Fisher still sells its original AG7 model, the very first Space Pen left. In one of the first live video transmissions from an American spacecraft, Apollo 7 mission commander Walter Schirra demonstrates zero gravity by blowing on a Space Pen.

Credit: NASA. The pens have been used on every NASA mission since. Advanced Search. Ballpoint of a Space Pen is made from tungsten carbide. It fits precisely not allowing leaks. In a reservoir part, gas is separated from ink with a sliding float. This prevents mixing of gas and ink and creation of bubbles which would prevent pen from working.

Ink used in this pen is also uncommon. This also prevents leaking. Gas used in the pen is nitrogen and pen cartridge is hermetically sealed. Practically at the same time NASA tried to find a pencil that they would use in space flights.

They ordered 34 mechanical pencils from Tycam Engineering Manufacturing, Inc.