NASA Sets a Fire in Space—For Science!

[Narrator] So, someone at NASA is starting fires in space.

No, it's not an arsonist terrorizing the space station.

NASA started this little blaze aboard the unmanned

Orbital ATK Cygnus cargo vehicle on purpose.

It's called the Spacecraft Fire Experiment.

Seriously, that's exactly what NASA is calling it.

Flames on terrafirma have buoyancy,

which gives them that classic shape.

But, in microgravity flames don't rise.

Instead, they stay globby and spherical.

And flames in space also spread differently,

as in they'll just spread in whatever direction

the spacecraft's ventilation system sends them.

So, if you don't know what you're doing,

don't light fires in space.

This experiment's payload is a three-foot

by five-foot module that contains sensors,

cameras, and, importantly, a swatch of cloth

to set aflame.

Appropriately enough, the experiment burned

up on re-entry but, during its brief life,

it tackled some important questions.

How materials burn in microgravity, for instance.

And how hot fire gets,

and how fast it spreads.

This will all help NASA make better fire safety

decisions and spacecraft design and materials.

Because, let's face it, if a fire starts

on a spacecraft there's not a lot that NASA

or anyone on Earth can do about it.