question: in which direction does the flame of a lighter go if you light it on in a spaceship in space?
comment: It forms an orb around the center of ignition/fuel, or is sprayed out in a line/wave along the path of the fuel's source if the fuel is moving/being ejected in some manner. Fore more information/videos, check out NASA's website URL_0
passages: A typical form of lighter is the "permanent match" or "everlasting match", consisting of a naphtha fuel-filled metal shell and a separate threaded metal rod assembly —the "match"— serving as the striker and wick. This "metal match" is stored screwed into the fuel storage compartment, the shell.
   Lighter
  
  A lighter is a portable device used to create a flame, and to ignite a variety of combustible materials, such as cigars, gas stoves, fireworks, candles or cigarettes. It consists of a metal or plastic container filled with a flammable fluid or pressurized liquid gas, a means of ignition to produce the flame, and some provision for extinguishing the flame. Alternatively, a lighter can be powered by electricity, using an electric arc or heating element to ignite the target.
  
  Section::::History.
   Section::::Other types.
  
  Section::::Other types.:Jet lighter.
  
  As opposed to lighters of the naphtha or standard butane type (whether refillable or disposable), which combust incompletely and thus create a sooty, orange "safety" flame, jet lighters produce a blue flame that in some cases is almost invisible and invariably burns at a far higher temperature. The spark in such lighters is almost always produced by an electric arc (as seen below), but some arc lighters burn with incomplete combustion.
  
  Disadvantages to the jet lighter include a "roaring" noise in operation, as well as higher fuel consumption.
  
  Section::::Other types.:Electric arc lighter.
   A "flameless lighter" is a safe alternative to traditional lighters. The "flameless lighter" uses an enclosed heating element which glows, so that the device does not produce an open flame. Typical flameless heating elements are an electrically heated wire or an artificial coal.
  
  Flameless lighters are designed for use in any environment where an open flame, conventional lighters or matches are not permitted. The flameless lighter is used in many environments such as prisons and detention facilities, oil and gas facilities, mental health facilities, nursing homes, airports and night clubs/restaurants.
   Many advertised so-called flameless lighters are not flameless at all, but the flame is invisible (such as a windproof lighter). If a piece of paper can easily be ignited, it is probably not a true flameless lighter and may not be safe in hazardous environments where smoking is confined to specific safe areas.
  
  The flameless lighter was invented by brothers Douglas Hammond and David Hammond in the UK in 1966 under the "Ciglow" name.
  
  Section::::Other types.:Catalytic lighter.
   Lighter (disambiguation)
  
  A lighter is a hand-held device for creating a flame.
  
  Lighter can also be:
  
  BULLET::::- Lighter (barge), a type of flat-bottomed barge used to transfer goods to and from moored ships
  
  BULLET::::- Lightering, also called "lighterage", the process of transferring cargo between vessels of different sizes
  
  BULLET::::- Lighter than air, gases that are buoyant in air because they have densities lower than that of air
  
  BULLET::::- Lighter-than-air craft, various types of aerostats including free balloons (see Balloon (aircraft)), moored balloons, and airships
  
  BULLET::::- Lighter, a fictional character in the game "Mother 3"
  
  Section::::Songs.
   Not to be confused with the meaning of "match" as in matchsticks or the "permanent match" (see below), this type of lighter consists of a length of "slow match" in a holder, with means to ignite and to extinguish the match.
  
  While the glowing match does not generally supply enough energy to start a fire without further kindling, it is fully sufficient to light a cigarette. The main advantage of this design shows itself in windy conditions, where the glow of the match is fanned by the wind instead of being blown out.
  
  Section::::Other types.:Permanent match.
   Specialized "windproof" butane lighters are manufactured for demanding conditions such as shipboard, high altitude, and wet climates. Some dedicated models double as synthetic rope cutters. Such lighters are often far hotter than normal lighters (those that use a "soft flame") and can burn in excess of . The windproof capabilities are not achieved from higher pressure fuel; windproof lighters use the same fuel (butane) as standard lighters, and therefore develop the same vapour pressure. Instead, windproof lighters mix the fuel with air and pass the butane–air mixture through a catalytic coil. An electric spark starts the initial flame, and soon the coil is hot enough to cause the fuel–air mixture to burn on contact.
   Arc lighters use a spark to create a plasma conduit between electrodes, which is then maintained by a lower voltage. The arc is then applied to a flammable substance to cause ignition.
  
  Section::::Other types.:Automobile lighter.
  
  Some vehicles are equipped with an electric lighter located on the dashboard or in the well between the front seats. Its electric heating element becomes hot in seconds upon activation. The car lighter was claimed to have been invented by Alexander Kucala, a tavern owner and inventor, on the south side of Chicago in the early 1930s called the AL Lighter.
  
  Section::::Other types.:Match lighter.
   Lighters typically use a percussion-type sparking device to ignite gas/liquid fuels such as butane or naphtha/gasoline. These are simple to light, often using a wheel mechanism that when spun with the thumb creates friction on the internal rod of ferrocerium "flint" and throws a shower of white-hot sparks into the gas or wick. Alternately, an electric spark ignites the fuel. With almost 2 billion lighters sold each year, this is the most popular means to light fires today.
  
  Section::::Methods.:Compression of air.
   The first lighters were converted flintlock pistols that used gunpowder. One of the first lighters was invented by the German chemist named Johann Wolfgang Döbereiner in 1823 and was often called Döbereiner's lamp. This lighter worked by passing flammable hydrogen gas, produced within the lighter by a chemical reaction, over a platinum metal catalyst which in turn caused it to ignite and give off a great amount of heat and light.
   Zippo lighters, which have gained popularity as “windproof” lighters, are able to stay lit in harsh weather, due to the design of the windscreen and adequate rate of fuel delivery.
   The patenting of ferrocerium (often misidentified as flint) by Carl Auer von Welsbach in 1903 has made modern lighters possible. When scratched it produces a large spark which is responsible for lighting the fuel of many lighters, and is suitably inexpensive for use in disposable items.
  
  Using Carl Auer von Welsbach's flint, companies like Ronson were able to develop practical and easy to use lighters. In 1910, Ronson released the first Pist-O-Liter, and in 1913, the company developed its first lighter, called the "Wonderlite", which was a permanent match style of lighter.
   The fuel-saturated striker/wick assembly is unscrewed to remove, and scratched against a flint on the side of the case to create a spark. Its concealed wick catches fire, resembling a match. The flame is extinguished by blowing it out before screwing the "match" back into the shell, where it absorbs fuel for the next use. An advantage over other naphtha lighters is that the fuel compartment is sealed shut with a rubber o-ring, which slows or stops fuel evaporation.
  
  Section::::Other types.:Flameless lighter.
   Section::::Music video.:Reception.
   Section::::Music video.:Background and concept.
   A metal enclosure with air holes generally surrounds the flame, and is designed to allow mixing of fuel and air while making the lighter less sensitive to wind. The high energy jet in butane lighters allows mixing to be accomplished by using Bernoulli's principle, so that the air hole(s) in this type tend to be much smaller and farther from the flame.
   The common distribution of a flame under normal gravity conditions depends on convection, as soot tends to rise to the top of a general flame, as in a candle in normal gravity conditions, making it yellow. In micro gravity or zero gravity, such as an environment in outer space, convection no longer occurs, and the flame becomes spherical, with a tendency to become more blue and more efficient (although it may go out if not moved steadily, as the CO from combustion does not disperse as readily in micro gravity, and tends to smother the flame). There are several possible explanations for this difference, of which the most likely is that the temperature is sufficiently evenly distributed that soot is not formed and complete combustion occurs. Experiments by NASA reveal that diffusion flames in micro gravity allow more soot to be completely oxidized after they are produced than diffusion flames on Earth, because of a series of mechanisms that behave differently in micro gravity when compared to normal gravity conditions. These discoveries have potential applications in applied science and industry, especially concerning fuel efficiency.
   In the 1950s, there was a switch in the fuel of choice from naphtha to butane, as butane allows for a controllable flame and has less odour. This also led to the use of piezoelectric spark, which replaced the need for a flint wheel in some lighters and was used in many Ronson lighters.
  
  In modern times most of the world's lighters are produced in France, the United States, China, and Thailand.
  
  Section::::Operation.
   BULLET::::- The fishtail burner was similar to the flat burner, but it produced a brighter flame and conducted less heat.
  
  BULLET::::- The last burner that was experimented with was the Welsbach burner. Around this time the Bunsen burner was in use along with some forms of electricity. The Welsbach was based on the idea of the Bunsen burner, still using gas. A cotton mesh with cerium and thorium was imbedded into the Welsbach. This source of light was named the gas mantle; it produced three times more light than the naked flame.
   Many portable mantle-type fuel lanterns now use fuel gases that become liquid when compressed, such as propane, either alone or combined with butane. Such lamps usually use a small disposable steel container to provide the fuel. The ability to refuel without liquid fuel handling increases safety and additional fuel supplies for such lamps have an indefinite shelf life if the containers are protected from moisture (which can cause corrosion of the container) and excess heat.
  
  Section::::Modern electric lanterns.
  
  Section::::Modern electric lanterns.:Lighting fixtures.
   If the oxidizer is oxygen from the surrounding air, the presence of a force of gravity, or of some similar force caused by acceleration, is necessary to produce convection, which removes combustion products and brings a supply of oxygen to the fire. Without gravity, a fire rapidly surrounds itself with its own combustion products and non-oxidizing gases from the air, which exclude oxygen and extinguish the fire. Because of this, the risk of fire in a spacecraft is small when it is coasting in inertial flight. This does not apply if oxygen is supplied to the fire by some process other than thermal convection.
   Catalytic lighters use methanol or methylated spirits as fuel and a thin platinum wire which heats up in the presence of flammable vapours and produces a flame.
  
  Section::::Safety.
  
  Two technical standards relate to the safety of lighters: the International Standard EN ISO 9994:2002 and the European standard EN 13869:2002.
   Section::::Public safety.:Firefighting equipment.
  
  Firefighting equipment in the United States is based on lightweight materials developed for the U.S. Space Program. NASA and the National Bureau of Standards created a lightweight breathing system including face mask, frame, harness, and air bottle, using an aluminum composite material developed by NASA for use on rocket casings. The broadest fire-related technology transfer is the breathing apparatus for protection from smoke inhalation injury.
   Section::::Music video.:Development and synopsis.
  