World’s First Wooden Satellite Built by Japanese Researchers

Japanese researchers have developed the first wooden satellite in history, and they want to launch their tiny cuboid spacecraft on a SpaceX rocket in September.

The experimental satellite, created by researchers at Kyoto University and the logging company Sumitomo Forestry, is only 10 centimeters (four inches) on each side.

When the device re-enters the atmosphere, the makers expect that the wooden material will burn up completely, possibly offering a technique to prevent the creation of metal particles when a retired satellite returns to Earth.

The developers warned that these metal particles might have a bad effect on communications and the environment when they declared the satellite’s completion on Tuesday.

Built by Japanese researchers, the world’s first wooden satellite is scheduled to launch on a SpaceX rocket in September. The spacecraft is a tiny cuboid.

Just 10 centimeters (four inches) separate the sides of the experimental satellite created by researchers at Kyoto University and the logging company Sumitomo Forestry.

It is anticipated by the inventors that the woody material will entirely burn up when the device re-enters the atmosphere, which could offer a means of avoiding the production of metal pieces once an abandoned satellite returns to Earth.

In a statement on Tuesday, the satellite’s developers stated that these metal particles might have a negative impact on communications and the environment.

“At a news conference, astronaut Takao Doi-a special professor at Kyoto University-stated that non-metal satellites need to become common.

Next week, the satellite’s creators intend to provide the JAXA space agency LignoSat, a satellite built of magnolia wood.

According to them, it will be launched into space on a SpaceX rocket in September and go to the International Space Station (ISS) from the Kennedy Space Center.

The satellite’s strength and durability will thereafter be evaluated when it is released from the Japanese ISS experiment module.

According to a Sumitomo Forestry spokeswoman, “data will be sent from the satellite to researchers who can check for signs of strain and whether the satellite can withstand huge changes in temperature,” AFP was informed on Wednesday.

Additionally on Tuesday, a rocket from the European Space Agency (ESA) and JAXA launched from California with a different advanced satellite to explore the potential role clouds could play in fighting climate change.

For three years, the EarthCARE satellite will orbit the planet at a height of about 400 kilometers (250 miles).