Help for the lost: a fabric antenna to keep you from being a castaway
![](https://s.yimg.com/ny/api/res/1.2/Q_1INLDQm0ybGE_1XVKB0w--/YXBwaWQ9aGlnaGxhbmRlcjt3PTk2MDtoPTc2OA--/https://s.yimg.com/uu/api/res/1.2/NadkzyJ17frQnyLlgCEX3g--~B/aD00MDA7dz01MDA7YXBwaWQ9eXRhY2h5b24-/https://www.blogcdn.com/www.engadget.com/media/2011/10/antenna.jpg)
Doesn't look like much, does it? But the next time you're lost at sea, you just might be thankful you've got it. That little square of fabric is actually a flexible antenna designed for the Cospas-Sarsat distress signal network, a Cold War-era system built to help pinpoint missing ships, planes and people. Designed to be sewn into a life vest, the antenna broadcasts an emergency beacon at a low frequency for greater range; in field tests, that helped rescuers find it within minutes. It's also tear- and water-resistant, which you'll be grateful for when you're being tossed around like a ragdoll in a sea of whitecaps. The technology was developed by the European Space Agency in partnership with a Finnish company. Next on their agenda? A round, floating companion for the marooned, codenamed Wilson.