Swords into Plowshares Options

[SulliedGoon]

I have heard of a bizarre but plausible tale
about satellites/spacecraft and old German
Warships.

The claim is certain very sensitive instruments
require pre-1945 metals as part of their manufacture
because testing during the atomic era has rendered all post-1945
metals too noisy for such purposes.

Futhermore, the source for this pre-1945 metal is
the German High Seas Fleet, scuttled after World War One.

It is said some of this salvaged "Kaiser" metal made its way onto
some of the Apollo missions and/or other spacecraft instrumentation.

Is there any truth to this or is it just
some type of freakish urban myth?

[AndyG]

I've read in several sources that some of this WWI metal was used in the UK's early nuclear industry to provide "zero radiation" steel insulation for sensitive radiation detectors.

Such detectors might well have been used during the testing of returned Apollo samples. I do not know if any such detectors were flown.

Andy