Space Exploration and Research Revolutionized Auto Tech On Earth

Space may be the final frontier, but humanity’s efforts in up there resulted in new and advanced technology down here. Some of that technology has found its way into the automobile. Since it’s the 50th anniversary of humans first stepping foot on the moon, it may be a good time to check out some of the space-inspired tech in your car.

Nissan created an infographic highlighting some of the tech. Tires are the most important part of any car, and modern winter tires can trace some of its roots to the space program. Nokian developed winter tires in the 30s, but Goodyear’s special tires for the lunar rover needed to remain pliable at -195 degrees. Those are conditions that aren’t experienced on Earth.

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  • Bd2 If I had time to watch other people driving, then I would go for LMP.
  • Steve Biro There are 24 races on this year’s F1 schedule. And I guarantee you no more than two will be reasonably exciting, Meanwhile, F1’s reception for Andretti reveals the dark underbelly of the sport. I have followed F1 since the 1960s and, frankly, I am running out of interest. I’ll catch a race if it’s convenient but won’t bother DVRing them.
  • YellowDuck Been watching since the 80s, seriously since the 90s once we had reliable TV coverage. I'm in Canada though. Hey, and don't forget that the Interlagos race is also in a convenient time zone, as is Mexico. So that's 5 races in the Americas. Absolutely love it, but it takes a bit more interest in the technical / strategic side of things to really appreciate it. It's not just going fast in circles until someone crashes into someone else, while drunk people watch. The US can be proud of what it has contributed - Austin is one of the best tracks on the calendar, Vegas turned out to be much better than anyone could have hoped, and even Miami - a real Indy car-style track - produced a good race this year.
  • JMII I watch every F1 race, same with Indycar which is 100X better in terms of actual racing.
  • Dale Quelle surprise.