NASA’s Artemis II mission launched this week, carrying four astronauts on the first crewed journey around the Moon since 1972. It was a milestone for human spaceflight, and a testament of technology the building envelope industry has championed for decades.
The Space Launch System rocket that powered Artemis II was insulated almost entirely in closed-cell spray polyurethane foam. The rocket’s cryogenic fuel tanks hold liquid hydrogen at -423°F and liquid oxygen at -297°F — temperatures that require airtight thermal protection to keep propellants stable through the extreme heat and pressure during launch. NASA engineers applied spray foam across the entire 212-foot core stage, ranging from half an inch to two inches thick, to ensure airtight temperature insulation.
“Without insulation, heat from launch would affect the stability of the cryogenic propellants and the rocket’s structural integrity would be compromised,” said Michael Alldredge, NASA’s thermal protection systems lead at Marshall Space Flight Center. The foam had to be flexible enough to move with the rocket while rigid enough to withstand aerodynamic pressures as the SLS accelerated from zero to 17,400 miles per hour in just over eight minutes. There is no margin for error in that environment, and only one material up to the job: spray foam.
This stuff sounds ultra tech but the cool part is this is the exact same material used to insulate homes across America. The material NASA chose for one of the most demanding thermal challenges in engineering is, as NASA’s own thermal protection lead Amy Buck puts it, “the same stuff people put in the walls of their homes.” The fundamental performance characteristics remain the same while application and certification differs slightly. Closed-cell spray foam resists heat transfer, blocks air infiltration, and maintains structural integrity under stress, whether the structure is your home or a space ship.
IBE is proud to promote the same innovative material that protects NASA’s astronauts on their historic journey to the Moon. Spray foam insulation performs at the highest level in the most demanding environments on Earth and in space. That record of performance is exactly why it belongs in every high-performance building envelope, and why spray foam is the ideal choice for your home insulation needs. This unique material not only is helping make space history, but can lower energy bills and create a more temperate home — proving that what works in outer space delivers just as powerfully here on Earth.