NASA and Japan will launch the first wooden satellite in history: But why?

In the past months, we mentioned that Japan has a plan to launch a satellite made of wood into space. Now these plans will be crowned with a final mission. NASA and the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) plan to launch the world’s first wooden satellite into space for more sustainable space missions.

Countdown has begun for the first wooden satellite

LignoSat, a coffee cup-sized satellite made of magnolia wood, will be launched into Earth orbit in the summer of 2024, according to NASA and JAXA.

The use of wood or wooden (yes, wood) materials in space brings with it very important advantages. In the lifeless vacuum of space, wood will not encounter natural problems such as burning or rotting. At the same time, wooden satellites will quickly burn up and turn into harmless pieces of ash when they re-enter the Earth’s atmosphere. This makes wood a surprisingly useful, biodegradable material for future satellites. Scientists who successfully tested wood samples on the International Space Station (ISS) earlier this year believe the test satellite is suitable for launch.

“Three wood samples were tested and showed no deformation after exposure to space,” the researchers said in a statement in May. Despite the extreme environment of space, which includes significant temperature changes, 10 months of exposure to intense cosmic rays and hazardous solar particles, tests confirmed no weathering or deformation of the materials, such as cracking, warping, peeling or surface damage.

To decide which wood to use, scientists sent three wood samples – magnolia, cherry and birch – to the ISS for preservation in a space-exposed module. The researchers decided on magnolia wood because it was less likely to split or break during production.

More than 8,440 metric tons of space objects are currently orbiting Earth, including space debris such as inoperable satellites and parts of spent rocket stages. Spacecraft made of metal are also expensive, and upon re-entry into the atmosphere—if they are large enough—they also pose a threat to people below. According to the researchers, wooden satellites like LignoSat should theoretically be less harmful as space debris.