He the wooden panel satellite is the first in the world and is being developed by Japanese researchers. Team SpaceX launched it into spacewith the mission of delivering it to the International Space Station (ISS).
The team that promises to revolutionize space exploration Thanks to its sustainability and durability, Released on Tuesday the 5th in one of the first tests of the use of material for future explorations of the Moon and Mars.
What is this satellite?
A small satellite, called ‘LignoSat‘, It weighs around 900 grams and measures only 10 centimeters on each sideand was developed by Kyoto University and Japanese construction company Sumitomo Forestry. Their the panels were made from a species of magnolia originally from Japan using a traditional technique without screws or glue.
It will then be launched from space into an orbit about 400 km above Earth.. The objective of this mission is to test the suitability of wood as a renewable building material for future exploration Moon and Mars. Its developers hope that in the future it will be possible to replace some of the metals used in space exploration with wood.
“With wood, a material we can make ourselves, we will be able to build houses, live and work in space forever,” said Takao Doi, a former astronaut and researcher at Kyoto University.
After the satellite is launched it will remain in orbit around Earth for six monthsand its electronic components will measure how wood withstands the extreme environment of space, where temperatures range between -100 ºC and 100 ºC.
Technology and sustainability behind the satellite
The satellite was certified by an American agency NASA to demonstrate that wood has a spatial quality. The material is more durable in space thane on Earth because there is no water or oxygen to spoil or ignite it. In addition, the wooden satellite also reduces the impact on the environment at the end of its life, according to researchers from Kyoto University.
LignoSat too will evaluate the ability of wood to reduce the impact of cosmic rays on semiconductorswhich is useful for applications such as building data centers, explains Kenji Kariya, director of Sumitomo’s Tsukuba Forestry Research Institute.
“It may seem outdated, but wood is actually cutting edge technology as civilization heads for the moon and mars. “Expansion into space could revive the timber industry,” he said.
In terms of sustainability, wood is a material that can be grown and is therefore renewable.according to Simeon Barber, a space scientist at the Open University in the United Kingdom. “The idea that wood can be grown on another planet to help explore space or make shelters…explorers have always used wood to make shelters when they went to a new Earth,” he said in a statement to BBC News.
Moreover, its developers hope so The use of wood in the construction of spacecraft can also be much less polluting than metal aircraft. when it burns up on re-entry to Earth at the end of its lifespan.
Link to news:
BBC news. “The world’s first wood-clad satellite launched into space“. 2024.
