Aerogel Puffer

Filled with the insulation used in space, for life down here on Earth.

£995 £199 Out of stock
Aerogel Puffer. Lunar White edition
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Size
Size guide

Model is 6ft 2 / 188cm with a 39 inch / 99cm chest, and wears size Large.

  • Insulation embedded with aerogel
  • Ultralightweight water repellent and windproof outer shell
  • Keeps you warm down to -30°C
Aerogel is an astonishingly effective insulator, which is exactly why NASA has used it to line spacesuits. Its individual nanopores are 10,000 times thinner than a human hair, making it almost impossible for air to pass through it. Invented at Stanford University, it was adopted by NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory in the 1990s, and has been travelling to and from space ever since.

Having already insulated electronics and people up in space, back on Earth aerogel is the ideal long-term solution to replacing down. And the Aerogel Puffer is the next step in our journey to bring it into clothing. The jacket combines advanced synthetic insulation embedded with particles of aerogel, with an outer shell made from a yarn so ultra lightweight that 1 kilometre of it weighs less than 1 gram.

Technical Details

Outer material made in Japan by Pertex: 100% polyamide
Ultra lightweight 7D (denier) outer material
Synthetic insulation made in Italy by PrimaLoft®: 100% polyester fused with aerogel particles
Fill power 600+
Fill weight 680 grams
Lining made in Italy: 100% polyamide
Water repellent
Windproof
Two-way front zipper
Two zipped chest pockets
Two zipped side pockets
One zipped internal pocket
Rear cord adjustment at hood
Elasticated cuffs
Cord adjustment at hem
Jacket weighs 1100 grams
Machine wash 40°C
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Cold air can’t pass through aerogel

Aerogel is an astonishingly effective insulator, which is exactly why NASA has used it to line spacesuits. Its individual nanopores are 10,000 times thinner than a human hair, making it almost impossible for air to pass through it

  • It’s the lightest solid material in the world

    To make aerogel you take silicon gel and put it through a process called supercritical drying, which slowly extracts the liquid part of the gel without collapsing its structure. What you’re left with is a porous, sponge-like material that’s made up of 99% empty space. It’s why aerogel is only three times more dense than air and the lightest solid material in the world.

  • Aerogel may hold the key to colonising Mars

    The future applications for aerogel are potentially limitless. A 2019 paper in Nature Astronomy by researchers at Harvard proposed that greenhouses constructed with aerogel could generate enough heat to melt water ice on the surface of Mars, which would allow settlers to produce food in situ. Aerogel would simultaneously protect crops from the solar radiation that filters through the thin Martian atmosphere.

  • It may also help to solve the biggest challenges on Earth

    Back on Earth, harnessing aerogel could help to shape the future. Studies show that incorporating it into construction materials like paints and plasters, creates a viable solution to reducing the fossil fuels we currently rely on to heat buildings. A new photocatalyst made from modified aerogel may be able to convert sunlight into hydrogen energy on an industrial scale. And emerging intelligent aerogels promise to convert air into drinking water, or detect harmful viruses.

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Keeps you warm down to -30°C

Instead of keeping you warm with feathers from dead ducks, the Aerogel Puffer keeps you warm down to -30°C with an advanced synthetic insulation embedded with particles of aerogel. The tiny, silk-like insulation fibres and the aerogel work together to perform two distinct roles to keep you warm. While the fibres trap millions of warm air pockets next to your body, the aerogel acts as a thermal barrier between you and cold air.

The insulation recreates the performance of down, then beats it

The Aerogel Puffer uses modern technology to recreate the lightweight warmth and comfort of down, while offering better performance in wet conditions. Although down traps heat well, it doesn’t work well in the rain. As soon as the fibres get wet, they clump together and stop insulating almost immediately. The synthetic insulation in the Aerogel Puffer matches down’s thermal properties, while a water repellent finish on the fibres means the jacket will keep insulating even in wet conditions.

Aerogel has already been to Mars

Aerogel was invented at Stanford University in the 1930s. Sixty years later it was adopted by the Jet Propulsion Laboratory at NASA, and it’s been travelling to and from space ever since. When the Pathfinder Sojourner Rover landed on Mars in 1997, it was aerogel that was used to insulate the electronics box because of its thermal properties. And on the Stardust spacecraft, it was aerogel they used to collect samples of interstellar dust from a comet that was moving six times faster than a bullet. So it has a decent CV.

An ultra-light shell built to work with aerogel

It doesn’t matter whether you’re colonising another planet or building a jacket for here on Earth, aerogel needs the right materials around it. So we spent months in R&D on a material that would protect and enhance the aerogel insulation. The jacket’s outer shell is an ultralightweight and highly robust Japanese material. Constructed from ultra-fine Nylon yarns that are woven into a dense ripstop construction, the material encourages the insulation to fully puff out (known as loft) so that it traps as much heat as possible around your body, without adding excess weight.

  • Windproof and water repellent

    Once the yarns have been woven together the material is finished with a treatment called ciré, which uses heat and pressure to slightly melt the outer part of the fabric, creating a glazed and highly windproof seal. The seal works to stop things getting in, like wind, snow and light rain. But it also stops things getting out, like the insulation and body heat.

1 kilometre of the yarn weighs under 1 gram

The yarn we use to make the outer shell is incredibly fine and lightweight. The weight and thickness of the material is defined with a unit of measurement called a ‘denier,’ which works by weighing 9000 metres of a single thread to get a measurement. For example, 9000 metres of silk weighs 1 gram, so silk is 1 denier (1D). An average human hair is around 20D. It’s rare to see materials lighter than 10 denier even in high performance outdoor gear. But the Aerogel Puffer’s outer shell is made from 7 denier Nylon.

Five zipped pockets

You’ll find two large zipped pockets on the side of the jacket that let you comfortably tuck your hands in for warmth. There are two more pockets with zippers on either side of the chest that fit phones, wallets and keys. And there’s a fifth small zipped pocket inside the jacket.

Detailing designed for warmth and comfort

The hood is lined with aerogel insulation just like the rest of the jacket and tightens with a cord adjuster at the back. The cuffs are elasticated to create a seal around your wrists, while the hem can also be tightened with adjusters to prevent cold air from getting in at your waist. And you can open or close the front two-way zipper from the top and the bottom.

Size + Fit

The Aerogel Puffer is designed with a regular fit.

Size XS S M L XL XXL
Fits chest 83 - 90 91 - 98 99 - 106 107 - 114 115 - 122 123 - 130
Fits waist 71 - 76 76 - 81 81 - 86 86 - 91 91 - 96 96 - 101
Size XS S M L XL XXL
Fits chest 33 - 36 36 - 39 39 - 42 42 - 45 45 - 48 48 - 51
Fits waist 28 - 30 30 - 32 32 - 34 34 - 36 36 - 38 38 - 40