Now that we have sent whiskey to the International Space Station, it only makes sense that someone would take the spotlight by engineering a whiskey drinking glass for space.
The folks at Scottish spirits company Ballantine have done just that, creating the first whiskey glass that can be used in microgravity.
Check out Ballantine’s promotional video for their new “Space Glass” below…
Although the Ballantine’s Space Glass seems ready for action, the whiskey currently aboard the ISS is for science experiments, not drinking — so as cool as the video above may seem, it is unlikely that the glass will actually be used in space anytime soon.
But that doesn’t mean the futuristic glass couldn’t get the job done. The Space Glass went through rigorous testing before the final prototype was perfected. The final design stays true to the traditional whiskey glass shape, but has a few new touches that make it worthy of use in space.
The glass was designed using microgravity conditions at the Zarm Drop Tower in Bremen, Germany. The first step was figuring out how to secure the whiskey. According to Engadget, Ballantine,
“…tested a number of designs before settling on a rounded glass with a spiral convex stainless steel base plated in rose gold that can create the surface tension necessary to hold the liquor down.”
The glass features a unique mouthpiece (also made of rose gold) that connects to the convex base plate through small straw-like channels on the outside of the glass. This unique design gives users the ability to easily control the flow of their whiskey.
The designers not only needed to consider how to get the whiskey out of the glass, but also how to safely get it into the glass.
“To tackle this problem they created an insert nozzle that can be inserted into a one-way valve in the bottom of the glass,”
reports Wired.
The final prototype weighs over 20 pounds, but in space the lack of gravity would help the glass’ weight feel much more reasonable.
The heaviness of the glass is credited to the materials that were used to make it. A good portion of the glass, like the base and mouthpiece, are made from stainless steel plated with rose gold.
The 3D-printed component of the glass is made of medical-grade PLA plastic, so every component of the glass is strong. In addition, the glass features a heavy magnet at the bottom — so when you’re in a microgravity environment, you can stick the glass to a magnetic surface to keep it from floating away.
At the moment, it is unclear if Ballantine made the glass to sell to the public, to try to get someone to use it in space or simply for promotion. But either way, the design is certainly appealing, and the glass’ functionality is impressive.
For Bonus: Check out the video below to learn more about how the Space Glass was made and how it was tested using microgravity conditions.
(h/t Medium)
