The main thrust of the special Living in Space display at the Frankfurt event chimed perfectly with the composite industry’s current preoccupation with lightweighting, since while reducing emissions may not be number one on the list of priorities for space travellers, the need to shed weight and maximise energy are more important than ever.

It’s for these reasons that heat and deformation-resistant carbon composites are already extensively employed as components in space capsules and fuel tanks, as well as the folding antennae of communication satellites, which can be as much as 30 metres in diameter when opened.

They will also form critical parts of the Ariane 6 – the new rocket for Europe for which the final €1.7 billion tranche of R&D funding was agreed on last December by the European Space Agency (ESA) with Airbus Safran Launchers.

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