Space Shuttle Thermal Protection System Tile

Space Shuttle Thermal Protection System Tile

This Space Shuttle Tile was given as a gift to British-born journalist Jeff Watson. Watson worked as a presenter in Australia on TV shows such as, 'Towards 2000' and 'Beyond 2000'.

In the early 1980s, Watson recorded a feature for 'Towards 2000' at Cape Canaveral about the Space Shuttle. He was gifted this example of the Thermal Protection System Tiles that the Space Shuttle used to survive the extreme temperatures of re-entry into the Earth's atmosphere.

This particular tile is an example of the High-temperature Reusable Surface Insulation (HRSI) tiles that the Space Shuttle used. More than 20,000 of these tiles were used on the Shuttle. They are made of silica, with a black coating of Reaction Cured Glass - which is made of tetraboron silicide and borosilicate glass. The tile is mostly empty space, so is incredibly light, and can withstand extreme high temperatures. Each tile fitted together like a jigsaw on the surface of the Space Shuttle.