Cathodic Protection
Cathodic protection is a technique used to control the corrosion of a metal surface by making it the cathode of an electrochemical cell. In the context of space and astronautical engineering, cathodic protection is used to protect metallic structures of spacecraft, launch vehicles, and other space systems from corrosion caused by the harsh space environment. This is achieved by connecting the metallic structure to be protected to a sacrificial anode made of a more reactive metal, such as zinc or magnesium, which corrodes preferentially. The anode is then replaced periodically. Cathodic protection is particularly important in space systems because the vacuum environment and exposure to atomic oxygen and other reactive species can cause rapid corrosion of unprotected metal surfaces.
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