Scientists in Gaithersburg (Maryland) have built a large black aluminum sphere dubbed "the death star." It leaks a pale blue light on the third floor of Building 226 in the federal government's National Institute of Standards and Technology.
Using six powerful mercury lamps totaling 36,000 watts, the sphere simulates sunlight. Twenty-four hours a day. Seven days a week. For the past seven years.
The sphere, about six feet across, was built to bombard things with ultraviolet light to see how well they hold up over time. The interior of the sphere is coated with a reflective Teflon-like material, Chin said.
One day exposed to the sphere's light is roughly akin to 35 days of normal exposure to the sun, said NIST research chemist Walter Eric Byrd.
The idea is to be able to quickly test plastics, coatings and the like without having to leave them out in the sun for weeks or months or years. "You don't want to wait 15 years to find out if your material will last 15 years," Chin said.
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