Japanese engineers launched the world’s first wooden satellite called LignoSat into space on Tuesday.
The miniature object was developed by scientists from Kyoto University and Sumitomo Forestry. It will be delivered to the International Space Station (ISS) and then placed in orbit at an altitude of about 400 kilometres above earth.
The name LignoSat comes from the Latin word lignum, which means “wood.” The palm-sized satellite is made of honoka, a special variety of magnolia wood traditionally used in Japan to create sword sheaths. This wood was chosen for a reason: according to the results of a ten-month experiment on the ISS, honoka wood proved to be the most suitable for space conditions.
The satellite was assembled without glue and screws using traditional Japanese technology. On board the LignoSat are sensors that will record how the wood reacts to space conditions. The satellite will encounter drastic temperature changes from -100 to 100 °C every 45 minutes as it moves from shadow to sunlight. Scientists also want to test wood’s ability to reduce the effects of space radiation on semiconductors, which could open up new prospects for space data centres. The Onglaisat satellite was launched into space on Tuesday from Cape Canaveral, Florida, US, aboard a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket, Taiwan’s space agency said.
In space, wood proves to be a more reliable material than on Earth. There is no water or oxygen there to cause the material to rot or catch fire. Moreover, wood can be a valuable resource for building bases on other planets.
In addition, satellites made of wood would help reduce the amount of space debris. When a satellite completes its mission, it would simply burn up in the atmosphere, leaving no polluting particles behind, as happens with metal satellites, which produce aluminium oxide on re-entry.
Astronaut and university employee Takao Doi said:
If we can prove that our first wooden satellite works, we will offer it to Ilon Musk’s SpaceX.
