The world’s first wooden satellite has been launched into space as part of study on using timber to help reduce the creation of space junk.
Scientists at Kyoto University expect the wooden material to burn up when the device re-enters the atmosphere – potentially providing a way to avoid generating metal particles when a retired satellite returns to Earth. That's good news because these particles may negatively affect the environment and telecommunications.
Each side of the box-like experimental satellite, named LignoSat, measures just 10cm (4in), and was launched on an unmanned SpaceX rocket from Nasa’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida.
The satellite, installed in a special container prepared by the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency, “flew into space safely”, it said in a post on X.
In 2020, a team of Japanese researchers tested the durability of three different types of wood in space: Erman’s birch, Japanese cherry and magnolia bovate. The samples went through exposure tests for 42 weeks on the International Space Station before they were returned to Earth earlier last year for analysis. Based on their tests, the team determined that magnolia wood - or “Hoonoki” in Japanese - would likely make the best material for a satellite. (As an interesting side reference, honoki was historically used to craft samurai sword sheaths.)
Now, this tiny little satellite will be kept on board the ISS until it is released into outer space in about a month's time to test its strength and durability. Data will be sent from the satellite to researchers who can check for signs of strain and determine if the satellite can withstand extreme changes in temperature.
“Satellites that are not made of metal should become mainstream,” Takao Doi, an astronaut and special professor at Kyoto University, said at a press conference earlier this year.