It seems like a waste to me...when pencils would have worked just fine.

Id have to say yes.

No way, love my space pen.  Lets me do work that needs to be in ink anywhere.  

Not this shit again!!!

www.snopes.com/business/genius/spacepen.asp

Government never spent a cent on the development of the Space Pen.

I believe it was a private company that developed it - no government funding or tax money was used, IIRC.

I don't think so.  I always find myself having to write upside down while in a 300 degree environment.

Quoted: Not this shit again!!! www.snopes.com/business/genius/spacepen.asp Government never spent a cent on the development of the Space Pen.

The lesson of this anecdote is a valid one, that we sometimes expend a great deal of time, effort, and money to create a "high-tech" solution to a problem, when a perfectly good, cheap, and simple solution is right before our eyes. The anecdote offered above isn't a real example of this syndrome, however. Fisher did ultimately develop a pressurized pen for use by NASA astronauts (now known as the famous "Fisher Space Pen"), but both American and Soviet space missions initially used pencils, NASA did not seek out Fisher and ask them to develop a "space pen," Fisher did not charge NASA for the cost of developing the pen, and the Fisher pen was eventually used by both American and Soviet astronauts.

Here's how Fisher themselves described it:

NASA never asked Paul C. Fisher to produce a pen. When the astronauts began to fly, like the Russians, they used pencils, but the leads sometimes broke and became a hazard by floating in the [capsule's] atmosphere where there was no gravity. They could float into an eye or nose or cause a short in an electrical device. In addition, both the lead and the wood of the pencil could burn rapidly in the pure oxygen atmosphere. Paul Fisher realized the astronauts needed a safer and more dependable writing instrument, so in July 1965 he developed the pressurized ball pen, with its ink enclosed in a sealed, pressurized ink cartridge. Fisher sent the first samples to Dr. Robert Gilruth, Director of the Houston Space Center. The pens were all metal except for the ink, which had a flash point above 200°C. The sample Space Pens were thoroughly tested by NASA. They passed all the tests and have been used ever since on all manned space flights, American and Russian. All research and developement costs were paid by Paul Fisher. No development costs have ever been charged to the government.

Because of the fire in Apollo 1, in which three Astronauts died, NASA required a writing instrument that would not burn in a 100% oxygen atmosphere. It also had to work in the extreme conditions of outer space:
In a vacuum.
With no gravity.
In hot temperatures of +150°C in sunlight and also in the cold shadows of space where the temperatures drop to -120°C
(NASA tested the pressurized Space Pens at -50°C, but because of the residential [sic] heat in the pen it also writes for many minutes in the cold shadows.)

Fisher spent over one million dollars in trying to perfect the ball point pen before he made his first successful pressurized pens in 1965. Samples were immediately sent to Dr. Robert Gilruth, Manager of the Houston Space Center, where they were thoroughly tested and approved for use in Space in September 1965. In December 1967 he sold 400 Fisher Space Pens to NASA for $2.95 each.

Lead pencils were used on all Mercury and Gemini space flights and all Russian space flights prior to 1968. Fisher Space Pens are more dependable than lead pencils and cannot create the hazard of a broken piece of lead floating through the gravity-less atmosphere.
Sightings:   This legend was mentioned in an episode of NBC's The West Wing TV series ("We Killed Yamamoto"; original air date 15 May 2002).

It wasn't a waste of taxpayers money


it was developed by a private company ON THEIR OWN

cool, I was wrong. Sorry for the waste of time.

But NASA does use them apperently they are useful...

just create an artificial gravity feild around the space ship...

Quoted: cool, I was wrong. Sorry for the waste of time. But NASA does use them apperently they are useful...

They gave me one as a going away gift from JPL. I like using it.

CW

The Russians used a pencil....

Compared to all the other ways the taxpayers money is wasted, it sems like a bargain to me.  Just look at the man hours that are put into tax code revisions every year!

Quoted: Compared to all the other ways the taxpayers money is wasted, it sems like a bargain to me.  Just look at the man hours that are put into tax code revisions every year!

Have to agree with that.

I dont like to think about the way money is pissed away though, pisses me off

the space pen was also used to trip a broken switch on Apollo 13(?)... it was the only tool they had that would fit... so it SAVED one mission and three astronauts.

Fisher Space Pen Co. is in Boulder City, NV, just a stone's throw away from here. (ok, a stone's throw in lunar gravity)

Paul Fisher also authored "The Plan" www.hydeparkmedia.com/fisher.html and is probably somewhere between Liberternian and Constitutionalist... he also ran against JFK in '60 and is no fan of the IRS.

No. It was not a waste of money.


It made a funny Sienfeld episode.

Quoted: It seems like a waste to me...when pencils would have worked just fine.

So, what do you do when your pencil breaks? Do you think that tiny shavings of lead and wood floating around in zero-g around multimillion dollar electronics is a GOOD idea?

Nothing like a little conductive graphite floating around!!!

Quoted: No. It was not a waste of money. It made a funny Sienfeld episode.

They made a funny one?

My Space Pen has been a faithful companion since 1977… a pencil woiuld have worn away many years ago!

Andy

Quoted: My Space Pen has been a faithful companion since 1977… a pencil woiuld have worn away many years ago! Andy

Andy,

The same one since '77?

Since one of my "hobbies" is losing Fisher Space Pens, I am very impressed if that is the case.

I lost my last one a few months ago and haven't replaced it yet. I do miss it. I'd had it for about 5 years when I lost it, too; it had a little sentimental value attached to it.hrisBaghdad

Since one of my "hobbies" is losing Fisher Space Pens, I am very impressed if that is the case.

Funny you should mention that. I just noticed i have had the same pen in my work shirts for about 8 years now without even realizing it. its just a cheap parker jotter though.

Of course i lose EXPENSIVE fountain pens all the friggin time. I guess I can only keep track of cheap pens.

Quoted: The Russians used a pencil....

They also armed their space vehicles ---- we don't ...........

It's kind of hard to be nit-picky about a freaking PEN when the whole damn SPACE PROGRAM has been such a gigantic redistribution of wealth.

My take on the space program has always been that it was good PR for the nutjobs who wanted to research and develop ICBMs so they could end the world.  In some sense, NASA has always been sort of a front operation for much more devious enterprises.

I like mine, I just haven't been able to try it out in space yet.

GM

Its a waste of time and tax payers money.

Werner Von Braun didn't think so.

I had one once, and it was a really nice pen.  I personally have recieved more benefit from that pen than 99% of the other government programs.

Whatever happened to Space Food Sticks ?????

Either reading comprehension in this thread is for shit or very few people actually read the thread before posting.

Bob

Quoted: Quoted: My Space Pen has been a faithful companion since 1977… a pencil woiuld have worn away many years ago! Andy Andy, The same one since '77? Since one of my "hobbies" is losing Fisher Space Pens, I am very impressed if that is the case. I lost my last one a few months ago and haven't replaced it yet. I do miss it. I'd had it for about 5 years when I lost it, too; it had a little sentimental value attached to it. Regards, Chris Baghdad

Same one… I was very possessive of it! You don't 'lose' them, people take them!

Take care over there in Baghdad…

Andy

Quoted: Quoted: I had one once, and it was a really nice pen.  I personally have recieved more benefit from that pen than 99% of the other government programs. It wasn't a government program. hinking.gif

The original post gave that impression, but you are entirely correct.  Link.