15 ordinary things and gizmos that were invented for space, as it turns out

It turns out that the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) is doing a little more for ordinary people and promoting technologies for space in those things that eventually spread widely around the world.

So, for example, did you know that the computer mouse was basically made by NASA? And how do you like the information that non-contact infrared thermometers are also the work of NASA? We invite you to take a look at 13 more different kinds of interesting things that NASA has to do with.

And yes, the everyday goods listed below are just 15 of the more than 2,000 consumer products that NASA considers "co-techs" from the space program. All are based on technologies and discoveries developed either directly by NASA, in partnership with NASA, or funded by NASA.

• 1. Memory foam

  If your mattress, pillow, daybed, desk chair, or bike seat contains memory foam (also known as "tempur" or "temper Foam"), you can thank NASA for that. This material was developed by aeronautical engineer Charles Yostom while he was working for the space agency, specifically designing shock-absorbing aircraft seats for test pilots.

• 2. Classic computer mouse

  The computer mouse was invented at Stanford in the early 1960s by Doug Englebart, whose research into interactive computer input was funded by NASA. The research was supported by NASA's Bob Taylor, who took over the management of Xerox and continued development of the computer mouse.

• 3. Infrared thermometers

  After the COVID pandemic, we all became massively acquainted with these devices - non-contact infrared thermometers, and, as they say, this would not have been without NASA. The space agency developed infrared thermometers to measure the temperature of distant space objects, and this technology eventually found its way into ordinary home thermometers, which are used everywhere.

• 4. Efficiently streamlined swimsuits

  While most of us don't wear high-performance swimsuits, swimmers like Michael Phelps are clearly indebted to NASA. The Speedo LZR Racer swimsuit, Olympic level swimwear, debuted in 2008 and owes its unique hydrodynamic properties to wind tunnel testing conducted at NASA's Langley Research Center.

• 5. Image sensors for mobile phone camera

  The image sensors used in almost all modern digital cameras are also the direct fruit of NASA's efforts. So, the first who applied CMOS technology in cameras was Eric Fossum, an employee of NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL). The goal was to make spacecraft cameras better, cheaper and more efficient, but the technology was quickly licensed by conventional camera manufacturers and spread around the world.

• 6. Self-driving cars

  Well, all these self-driving vehicles, which Elon Musk is considered to have made a serious contribution to the development of, are basically due to the Jet Propulsion and Quantum Sciences Laboratory, which began its activities in the 1980s. Among the inventions of the laboratory is a spherical resonator of light waves called "whispering gallery mode optical resonator".

  Until recently, this technology was practically not used not only massively, but even in the targeted direction, but only until it was integrated into GM LiDAR systems for self-driving cars.

• 7. Video game Lunar Lander and a bunch of movies

  No, Atari's arcade game of the late 1970s wasn't built on a NASA-designed computer chip or anything, but the whole premise of the game—landing a tiny lander safely on the rocky surface of the Moon—is based entirely on NASA's Apollo missions.

• 8. LASIK surgery (laser vision correction)

  In an attempt to determine how the absence of gravity affects eye movements, NASA conducted a series of experiments on the International Space Station in the mid-2000s. The results were useless for the inhabitants of the Earth, but the eye-tracking technology developed for the experiments makes LASIK vision correction surgery possible.

• 9. More scratch resistant lenses

  Yes, there were scratch-resistant lenses before Ray-Ban licensed the technology developed by NASA for their Survivor line of sunglasses, but they weren't as good. NASA has coated the sensitive lenses of sunglasses with diamond-like carbon for the first time to make them 10 times more scratch-resistant than any other method used.

• 10. Aircraft traffic control systems for airports

  The US Federal Aviation Administration and NASA recently completed the development of an advanced aircraft traffic control system for airports on Earth. This year, 27 of the busiest airports in the United States implemented the Integrated Arrival, Departure, and Flight System (IADS).

• 11. Corrugated road surface

  According to the Space Agency, "accidents on slippery roads have decreased by 85 percent" in the US, and slip-related injuries at swimming pool decks, playgrounds, and industrial facilities have also decreased.

  It is claimed that this happened due to the implementation of the NASA development, according to which it was necessary to cut special grooves on the runways to increase the thrust of the aircraft.

• 12. Foil rescue blankets

  Those shiny foil blankets sold on Aliexpress and other online retailers were designed by NASA in 1964. This material is made by sputtering aluminum onto thin plastic and is widely used in campers, sun visors, space telescopes and more. As a blanket, it reflects warmth to whoever is wrapped in it.

• 13. Nike Airs

  These shoes are the product of two NASA innovations. Harder, more durable rubber for sports shoes is molded using "rubber blow molding" technology, a process pioneered by NASA to make helmets. The cushioning material used in Nike Air sneakers was developed by NASA engineer Frank Rudy.

• 14. Improved infant formula

  While studying nutritional strategies for a future trip to Mars, NASA scientists have discovered a natural source of omega-3 fatty acids that were previously found only in breast milk. The ingredient is now used in almost all infant formulas on the market.

• 15. Cordless handheld compact vacuum cleaners

  Black and Decker worked closely with NASA in the 1960s to produce cordless drills, hammers, and other tools that could operate in low (or no) gravity. The Dustbuster cordless vacuum cleaner is a direct result of cooperation.