eli5: Why is white so prevalent in spacecrafts and equipments?
In: 101
1. White reflects heat, which is useful because direct sun in space can be 250F.
2. White is highly visible which allows for greater range of visual tracking.
3. White paint has no pigment, and pigment has weight. Every kilogram sent to space costs thousands or 10s of thousands of dollars, so saving 100lb in pigment (because rockets are literally the size of buildings) could be a million of dollars per launch saved.
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