Gear Review

Space All-Weather Blanket

1. rugged ground cloth
2. tarp/emergency shelter
3. 7' x 5'
4. weight: about 12 oz

There are lots of "space" blankets on the market today, but this is one of the originals, from back in the days when people thought space was cool.

Many of the other space blankets are lighter—most, in fact, are little more than sheets of mylar that will shred like aluminum foil in the slightest breeze.

The All-Weather Space Blanket is beefy and tough. It puts a little more weight on your back, but it offers bomb-proof protection as a ground cloth, or as a tarp/emergency shelter.

I've seen various claims that space blankets will reflect up to 80% of your body heat, thus making them superior for keeping you warm. I don't buy it, frankly. Maybe these blankets do reflect back lost radiant heat, but obviously convection/conduction is the primary foe in the backcountry, and if you think you're going to wrap your naked body in this or any other space blanket and stay warm, you're sadly mistaken.

That said, as a supplement to your existing clothing (and for added weather/wind protection), it's not a bad idea to keep a space blanket in your emergency kit.

This model remains the best choice in existence for a ground cloth, if you can stand the extra weight. If not, see the Gossamer Gear polycryo ground cloth. Secure corner grommets let you use this as tarp overhead as well. Another possibility: some ultralighters cut these in half to reduce the weight.

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