NASA

When NASA first started sending up astronauts, they quickly discovered that ballpoint pens would not work in zero gravity. To combat the problem, NASA scientists spent a decade and $12 billion to develop a pen that writes in zero gravity, upside down, underwater, on almost any surface including glass and at temperatures ranging from below freezing to 300 C.

The Russians used a pencil.

【中文翻譯】

美國國家太空總署 (NASA) 首次把上太空人送上天後不久便發現，原子筆在失重狀況下完全不管用，為了解決這個問題，NASA 科學家花了十年時間及 120 億美元經費，開發了一種可以在無重、倒立、水中、包括玻璃在內的任何表面，以及自冰點到到 300 度 C 的任何溫度都能使用的筆。

而俄羅斯太空人用的是鉛筆。