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The world’s first wooden satellite has successfully launched aboard a SpaceX rocket, as announced by its Japanese developers on Tuesday. This initiative is part of a resupply mission aimed at the International Space Station (ISS).
Researchers from Kyoto University anticipate that the wooden structure will disintegrate upon re-entering the atmosphere. This innovative approach may help minimize the production of metal debris that can occur when traditional satellites deorbit and return to Earth. Such debris has the potential to harm the environment and disrupt telecommunications, according to the project’s creators.
The satellite, known as LignoSat, has a compact design with each of its box-like sides measuring only 10 centimeters (about four inches). It was launched from NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida, as reported by Kyoto University’s Human Spaceology Center.
The experimental satellite was placed in a specialized container designed by the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency and, according to updates on the platform X, “safely flew into space.”
A representative from Sumitomo Forestry, one of the co-developers of LignoSat, confirmed to AFP that the launch was a success. She noted that the satellite is expected to reach the ISS shortly and will be deployed into space approximately a month later for durability and strength testing.
Data will be transmitted back to researchers who will analyze it for signs of stress and assess the satellite’s ability to endure extreme temperature fluctuations.
“Satellites constructed from materials other than metal could become the norm,” asserted Takao Doi, an astronaut and special professor at Kyoto University, during a press conference earlier this year.
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