“Bronze’s (Possible) Role in Saving the World in Armageddon”

In July 1998, the world as we know it almost came to an end. Well, in the summer blockbuster Armageddon that is. The science-fiction disaster film, starring Bruce Willis, Billy Bob Thornton, Ben Affleck and Liv Tyler, was an international box-office success as well as the highest-grossing movie of 1998.

The film, tells the story of renowned deep-core oil driller Harry Stamper (Willis), whom NASA recruits to take on a dangerous space mission to stop an asteroid from colliding with Earth and wiping out humanity. Stamper, along with his crew, take off into space in the military shuttles, aptly named Freedom and Independence, to enact NASA’s plan, which includes drilling into the surface of the asteroid and detonating a nuclear bomb to split the asteroid in two.

If you’re familiar with the film, you’ll remember that the world was going to be saved by special drill designed by the lead character.  The drill would be affixed to the space vehicles, referred to as “Armadillos”. Featured below is the Armadillo, a mobile vehicle with the Special World Saving attached to the top.

So here is the question….would Bronze have played a part in saving the world? Would Harry Stamper have needed to call Atlas Bronze for Bronze parts to help run this drill? Theoretically, YES! 

Below, you can see the probable real-life equivalent of a Mobile Drill.  Sure it’s not futuristic shiny metallic or doesn’t have really cool looking drill heads but here on earth it gets the job done!

(Photo courtesy of Atlas Copco, www.atlascopco.com)

This Mobile Drill would indeed have required several bronze parts to operate the machine effectively.  As you can see in the below picture there are bronze parts that Atlas Bronze could have worked day & night to provide the brave crews of Freedom & Independence. Atlas Bronze could have provided bronze Finished Machine Bushings to fit a variety of anticipated material needs for the World saving mission; such as:

1. Superior Wear Resistance - This would have been very helpful up on the asteroid as Harry’s rogue team member eventually blows out the transmission on the first go around in drilling on asteroid
2. Resilience to Low Temperatures - In fact, copper alloys become stronger and more ductile as the temperature goes down, retaining excellent impact resistance to 20 K (-253 C or -424 F).  According to Google the average temperature of an asteroid is -100 degrees Fahrenheit
3. Magnetic Resistance - This should cover the Magnetic field issue that the crew encountered when landing on the asteroid. 

So at the end of the day…Atlas Bronze surely could have helped save the day, even as the world is potentially ending. #BronzeIsEverywhere