Very cool mirror coating technology

[clive milne]

(pun intended)

http://engineering.stanford.edu/news/stanford-engineers-invent-high-tech-mirror-beam-heat-away-buildings-space

[jenchris]

As a telescope mirror coating, it would be great for modified cameras in AP

[el_draco]

I have a feeling the uses could be much more diverse. A telescope that reflects all wavelengths equally? How about a thermal smelting unit? Wow!

[MrB]

This would make very efficient refrigerators and even long lasting esky's for camping, I wonder if you would even need ice?

[clive milne]

Esky's, yes.
Fridges, no (point).

[MrB]

Did I miss something?

[clive milne]

.
It relies on re-radiating thermal energy at the very specific colour (in the infrared) where the atmosphere is transparent. The mirror thus has a very low temperature to radiate to (the cosmic background). Thusly treated, an esky (outdoors) could dump it's heat into space, a fridge indoors would collect heat radiating from your ceiling.

It's the greenhouse effect in reverse.

very clever.

[sharpiel]

Radiating all our heat into space....a runaway cosmic background warming result. Better do it from Australia. Our government wont believe it exists :D

[MrB]

Ah ok, I though the IR radiated from the fridge coating would heat the ceiling which, in a building suitably coated, would then re-radiate to space?

[gaa_ian]

Very impressive technology. I wonder what the production cost is going to be, how durable the material will be etc .....
It shows why we need fundamental science research.

[el_draco]

There's a hell of a possibility there..... If its cheap and lasts a long time, coat our cities..... This could be bigger than we can imagine..