Drive me to the Moon

6 August 2013 - Thanks to advanced electrical wiring developed for space, some racing drivers are now steering sleeker and potentially faster cars in competitions here on Earth. Sophisticated wiring techniques developed for ESA satellites are now used in Formula One cars, improving their performance and weight. "We identified a need in the space marketplace, where wiring needs to be robust, flexible, lightweight and able to withstand large forces," said Terry McManus, project manager for UK-based Tekdata's Cryoconnect space division. In space, Cryoconnect began using materials that become superconductive at the low temperatures in space. They also developed a method of weaving wires together in a flat, loom-like configuration. These flat bundles of electrical wiring are flying on a number of space platforms. The company developed the wiring 'harness' for one of ESA's Herschel instruments, and a harness was produced for ESA's Planck High Frequency Instrument to work at only a tenth of a degree above absolute zero to survey the remnant light from the Big Bang.