Japanese researchers will reveal this third fair that they will build as the world’s first wooden satellite, a small 10-centimeter object, in the shape of a cube, which will have to be sent to space aboard a SpaceX launcher launched in the United States, possibly in September.
Oh”LignoSat”, a mixture of the words lignoprefix meaning wood and satellite, is the result of about four years of development efforts by a team involving Kyoto University and the wood products company Sumitomo Forestry Co, with the aim of ensuring the sustainability of the planet and take advantage of the low cost of the material in space development.
The satellite is a 10-centimeter cube made of magnolia wood panels 4 to 5.5 millimeters thick, with a structure partially built in aluminum. It has solar panels attached to some sides and weighs about 1 kilogram. It was built based on a traditional Japanese technique that does not use screws or adhesive materials, according to the Japanese newspaper Japan Today.
The creators hope that the wooden material will burn completely when the device re-enters the atmosphere. a way to avoid the emission of metallic particles, as is usually the case when a metallic satellite returns to Earth. According to scientists, these particles could have a negative impact on the environment and telecommunications.
Several types of wood were tested, with magnolia wood being the most robust. “The ability of wood to withstand the simulated conditions of low Earth orbit surprised us,” Koji Murata, head of “space wood” research and member of the Biomaterials Design Laboratory at Kyoto University, explained in 2021.
After a series of experiments that determined the performance of the spacecraft in orbit, The satellite will be sent into space in September., on a SpaceX rocket from NASA’s Kennedy Space Center, Florida, USA, bound for the International Space Station (ISS), Kyoto University and the company Sumitomo Forestry Co said this Tuesday in a joint statement. . “LignoSat” is expected to be sent from the ISS to “outer space” next month.
The team plans to explore the potential of wood by analyzing data sent back by the new satellite. “One of the satellite’s missions is to measure the deformation of the wooden structure in space. “Wood is durable and stable in one direction, but can suffer dimensional changes and cracks in the other direction,” the head of the research told the Observer. The data will be transmitted to a communications station at Kyoto University and used to develop a second satellite.
The creators plan to hand over the satellite to the Japanese aerospace agency Jaxa on June 4.
Source: Observadora
