China creates high-tech insulation for space

China has developed a cutting-edge ultralight material for thermal insulation on its rockets and spacecraft, according to engineers.

Zou Junfeng, a senior engineer at the Aerospace Institute of Advanced Materials and Processing Technology in Beijing, said the material, called aerogel, has been widely used in space missions by the United States, Russia and Europe.

"We have also developed our own aerogel products and some of them are at the highest technological level in the world," he said. "A lot of our spacecraft, satellites and rockets are now using our products to resist heat or maintain internal temperatures."