Malaysian astronaut Sheikh Muszaphar Shukor plays with gravity in outer space flight in 2007. © NASA
No need to be a billionaire to experience outer space. In the blink of an eye, Makery teaches you to convert an ordinary ballpoint pen into an “anti-gravity” pen to write in any position…
While waiting to build your own rocket to conquer the stars, Makery invites you to test a DIY tip to experience zero gravity. No need to prepare for a lunar mission—all you need is a ballpoint pen, a strip of rubber, a bit of glue and baking powder to make your own gravity-defying space pen. Then write in the air, vertically or upside-down, as if you were inside a spaceship.
The first pen made for outer space, the Fisher Space Pen, invented by pen manufacturer Paul C. Fisher in 1965, used pressurized ink cartridges. It can write in zero gravity, upside-down, underwater, in the most extreme conditions… and is still available for $58. We found a DIY version on Instructables, and have adapted it into this ultra simple space tutorial. The rest is up to you, apprentice cosmonauts and intergalactic tinkerers!
Materials
– Ballpoint pen
– Baking powder
– Instant glue
– Drinking straw
– Toothpick
– Small glass of water
– Short strip of rubber
Tools
– Scissors
– Tweezers
Assembly
1) Use the tweezers to extract the ink cartridge from the pen. You have now separated the two parts of the pen: the plastic shell and the ink refill.
2) Take the strip of rubber and cut off a short piece. Trim the rubber piece into a plug that can be inserted into the pen.
3) Use the straw to pour a bit of water into the refill.
4) Use the toothpick to drop some baking soda into the refill. Don’t hesitate to fill up—it may be tedious, but it allows for an extended space experience…
5) Use the toothpick to pack the baking soda into the refill.
6) Readjust the rubber plug.
7) Glue the rubber plug into the end of the refill. Once the glue is dry, shake.
8) Your anti-gravity pen is complete.
9) Start writing on a piece of paper, against the wall, upside-down… and watch your pen defy gravity!
Original tutorial on Instructables