The world’s first wooden satellite, built by Japanese researchers, was launched into space on Tuesday. The satellite is an early stage of research into how wood can be used in lunar and Mars exploration.
The wooden satellite, “Lignosate,” developed by Kyoto University and housing company Sumitomo Forestry, will be carried by a SpaceX mission to the International Space Station and then released into orbit 400 km (250 mi) above Earth.
“Ligno” means “wood” in Latin, and Lignoset is a handheld satellite. Through it, an attempt is being made to find out how wood can be used as an eco- friendly and renewable resource for human life in space.
Takao Doi, a former astronaut at Kyoto University, says, “Using wood that we can create, we can build a house in space, making life and work possible.”
Lignoset is a NASA- certified wooden satellite designed to house the Moon and Mars in the future using wood. Koji Murata, professor of forestry at Kyoto University, said, “At the beginning of the 1900s, even airplanes were made of wood. So it is possible to make wooden satellites.”
Wood is more durable in space than on Earth because there is no water and oxygen that would cause it to rot or burn. Furthermore, wood satellites ultimately have less impact on the environment, the researchers say. Metal satellites produce aluminum oxide on re- entry into the atmosphere, but wooden satellites burn up and produce less pollution.
Metal satellites are likely to be banned in the future, so Doi said he is ready to propose using wooden satellites for Elon Musk’s SpaceX after the success of Lignosat.
Honoki, a wood used for ancient swords in Japan, has been considered by researchers to be the best for space.
Lignoset made from honoki uses traditional Japanese crafting methods without any screws or glue. The satellite will remain in orbit for six months to measure how wood survives temperature changes in space.
Lignoset can measure how wood affects semiconductors, which could be useful for data center construction, said Kenji Kariya from Sumitomo Forestry.
“While wood may seem old, it is cutting- edge technology for manned space on Mars and the moon,” he said.