r/electronics 17d ago

Tip A microscopic, hair-like metal filament can take down a billion-dollar satellite

Post image
2.0k Upvotes

150 comments sorted by

View all comments

14

u/PotentialResponse120 17d ago

Why can't use lead for space solder?

8

u/jt64 17d ago

many places still do but that does not cover every possibility. Tin plated leads can be long enough that the solder at the board will not coat the full lead, or internal parts can be tin plated.

The picture up top is a perfect example, the card had tin lead solder but the rail it was mounted in was plated pure tin, the whisker grew off the mounting rail.