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by om3n 2451 days ago
but what cools the radiator fins, in the absence of air?
3 comments

If you look at diagrams of the International Space Station you'll see they have rather large radiators, so it does work in space. They're always positioned in shade to radiate heat most efficiently. It's the two long pieces labeled 11 in this diagram: https://www.nasa.gov/sites/default/files/thumbnails/image/it...
Infrared radiation from the hot fins to outer space should be taking energy out (cooling it) a bit, not sure how much though.
I think he is wondering about the utility of fins geometrically speaking in steradians when it comes to radiative cooling?
It's radiative cooling. Same way the sun heats the earth.