Rapid Fire
World's First Wooden Satellite
- 03 Jun 2024
- 1 min read
Japanese researchers have built the world's first wooden satellite, LignoSat, crafted from magnolia wood, with each side measuring merely 10 centimetres.
- The satellite will be launched on a SpaceX rocket from the Kennedy Space Center in September 2024 to the International Space Station (ISS), where it will be deployed from the Japanese ISS experiment module to assess its strength and durability.
- Researchers believe the wooden material of the device will completely burn up when it re-enters the atmosphere, preventing the creation of harmful metal particles that can affect the environment and telecommunications when a satellite is retired.
- In another development, a rocket launched from California by the European Space Agency (ESA) and JAXA carried the EarthCARE satellite, which will orbit 400 kilometres above Earth for three years to study how clouds affect climate change.
Read more: ISRO's new NavIC Satellite NVS-01
