Your Windshield Compared to
the Space Shuttle’s Windshield
Yuma, Martinez Lake, and Poston Residents: While driving down the road and gazing through your windshield, have you ever wondered about the space shuttle’s windshield and how it may compare to the one you are looking through? The answer is, they are both similar in design and function and they both protect from the elements. Where they differ is in the degree to which the design is applied.
Your vehicle’s windshield consists of two sheets of tempered glass with a layer of laminate sandwiched between them and in the event the glass breaks, the layer of laminate holds the broken pieces together. The space shuttle’s windshield also has a layer of laminate sandwiched between two sheets of tempered glass. However, the space shuttle’s windshield consists of three individual windshields, bonded together to create one thick windshield. The outer windshield is .6 inches thick and protects the cockpit and its occupants from the heat experienced during launch and re-entry. The middle windshield is three and a half inches thick, has pressure and thermal protection attributes and is of high optical quality. The inner windshield is .6 inches thick and is part of the cockpit’s pressurization system.
Did You Know?
Yuma, Martinez Lake, and Poston Drivers: Auto glass UV Coatings help decrease the risk of cancer, and helps protect the interior of your vehicle from fading and cracking!
Your vehicle’s windshield has UV protective coatings that block up to 99% of UVA and UVB light. The space shuttle’s windshield also has UV protective coatings and since space shuttles are exposed to such a high degree of sun glare, they have shades that are put in place manually when their use is required. Obviously, it would be impossible to utilize such protective shades on automobiles.
Your vehicle’s windshield and the space shuttle’s windshield are made to withstand varying degrees of expansion and contraction related to temperature changes. Your vehicle’s windshield requires far less protection than the space shuttle’s windshield, which is exposed to temperatures ranging between negative two hundred and fifty degrees below zero and three thousand degrees Fahrenheit.
From Rocks to Meteorites
Your vehicle requires only one windshield, whereas the space shuttle requires the use of several smaller windshields. The largest of these windshields are the two that are above the crew compartment and are just large enough to be utilized as an emergency exit. Your vehicle’s windshield is designed aerodynamically to deflect rocks and the space shuttle’s windshield is designed aerodynamically to deflect micrometeorites.
Your vehicle is coated in primer and paint in order to protect against rust and the elements. The space shuttle is covered with glass coated tiles and has a mixture of ninety percent air and ten percent slurry that consists of fibers mixed with water. The tiles are coated with reaction cured glass sintered (heated without being melted), which causes them to be rigid. Upon the space shuttles’ re-entry into earth’s atmosphere the heat is so intense it would melt metal in a matter of seconds, yet the glass remains stable. Most interestingly, these tiles can be taken from an oven that is heated to twenty three hundred degrees Fahrenheit and can be immediately immersed in cold water without damaging the glass. The surface heat dissipates so quickly that the tiles can be held by their edges without using gloves, only seconds after removing them from an oven, and while their interior is still glowing red-hot.
Glass for all Environments
Yuma, Martinez Lake, and Poston Drivers: It is difficult to believe that glass may be used under such intense environments, since the glass we deal with on a daily basis appears to be fragile, when in fact it can be extremely durable. Your vehicle’s windshield is made to withstand some of the harshest treatments and is strong enough to be part of a vehicle’s structural integrity. Your vehicle’s windshield has the ability to keep you and your family safe within its environment. However, it could never withstand the intense environment to which the space shuttle is exposed. In the end, what we perceive to be fragile can in fact be made to withstand a variety of extreme conditions and environments.
Schedule an Appointment Now
SunTec Auto Glass is a family-owned business located in Arizona, serving most of Maricopa and Pinal counties. We are auto glass repair professionals and specialize in windshield replacement, auto glass repair, window tinting and glass etching. The installation team at SunTec Auto Glass maintains the highest level of certification available in the windshield repair and auto glass replacement industry. From headlights to taillights, from the east valley to west valley, whether you are looking to have a windshield replaced or even a side window replaced such as a door glass, quarter glass, or vent glass the team at SunTec Auto Glass can do it. If you live in Yuma, Martinez Lake or Poston, look no further. For professional help and premium quality automotive glass, parts and moldings. Contact us today.
Call SunTec Auto Glass Today
(480) 782-5489