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Scientists have the world’s lightest material. It is so light that it can on top of a dandelion. Researchers from the University of California, the California Institute of Technology, and HRL Laboratories the material they call ''ultralight metallic microlattice'' (UMM). It is 100 times than styrofoam – the material used in packaging goods – and 10,000 times lighter than ultralight aerogels and carbon foams (also for packing). Lead researcher Tobias Shandler of HRL why the material is so light. He said: “The is to fabricate a lattice of interconnected tubes with a wall thickness 1,000 times than a human hair.'' It is so hollow that it is 99 per cent air.

The new material has been made of the metal nickel, but Bill Carter, a at HRL, said it could be made out of other materials. He said UMM is so light that: “It more than 10 seconds…for the lightest material we've made to fall if you it from shoulder height.'' The developers believe there are of uses for UMM and that it will be in many everyday within the next decade. Computer experts say UMM will help lighter and faster computers. Another use is protection - researchers say that when it is squashed to half its , the material almost rebounds back to its original form. Other uses include dampening and thermal insulation.