A new generation of materials that could be used to build spacecraft are on their way to the International Space Station (ISS) to be rigorously tested.

Developed by researchers at the University of Bristol, the carbon-fibre reinforced composites will need to survive extreme temperatures between -150°C and +120°C, space debris travelling at speed, severe electromagnetic radiation, high vacuum and atomic oxygen that erodes even the toughest materials.

The composites will be placed on the Bartolomeo platform, located on the front of the ISS, where they will orbit Earth up to 9,000 times over the next 12 to 18 months at speeds of 17,000mph (27,400km/h).

“Space is the most challenging environment for which to design new materials. You’re pitting your materials expertise, skills and ingenuity against extremes of temperature, mechanical stress, radiation, high-speed impacts and more,” said Ian Hamerton, polymers professor at the University of Bristol.

“Any one of those might be difficult, and...