NEW DELHI – Japan and the United States plan to launch the world’s first wooden satellite, the LignoSat spacecraft, into space this summer.
This unusual spaceship is made of magnolia wood, which during experiments was found to be very stable and resistant to cracking. The Guardian reports that Japanese scientists created the wooden satellite, and now the United States is part of their mission as they put the finishing touches on the satellite that will be launched on an American rocket.
In a pioneering effort to tackle the growing problem of space debris, researchers at Kyoto University in collaboration with logging company Sumitomo Forestry have built a wooden satellite. They came up with the idea of using alternative materials besides metal, namely biodegradable materials.
Takao Doi, a Japanese astronaut and aerospace engineer at Kyoto University, recently warned that “all satellites that enter Earth’s atmosphere will burn up and produce small particles of alumina, which will float in the upper atmosphere for years.” “Ultimately, this will have an impact on the Earth’s environment.”
To address this problem, researchers in Kyoto created a project to evaluate wood species to determine how well they can withstand the rigors of space launches and long-distance flights in Earth orbit. The first tests were conducted in a laboratory that recreated conditions in space, and found that the wood samples had no change in mass or measurable signs of rot or damage.
“We were amazed by the wood’s ability to survive in these conditions,” said Koji Murata, project leader.
Why is this important?
Most importantly, this material is biodegradable, meaning it is environmentally friendly and is the best alternative to non-biodegradable materials which could become extinct in the next 2000 years. This will revive hope that even after non-biodegradable objects become extinct, satellites and other objects can still function.
widespread
Researchers at the University of British Columbia in Canada recently revealed that aluminum from satellite reentry could lead to depletion of the ozone layer that protects the Earth from the sun’s ultraviolet rays and could also affect the amount of sunlight transmitted through the atmosphere. And it reached Earth, according to The Guardian.
However, this should not be a problem with satellites made of wood, such as LignoSat, which if burned up upon re-entry into the atmosphere after completing its mission, would only produce a fine mist of biodegradable ash.
2024-02-19 02:30:30
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