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Mahesh

12/11/24 11:55 AM IST

Lignosat, the first wooden satellite launched into space

In News
  • The world’s first wood-panelled satellite was launched into space on November 5 to test the reliability of timber as a renewable building material for future space travel.
Lignosat
  • LignoSat measures just 4 inches (10 centimeters) on each side, and weighs 900 grams.
  • The satellite is named after the Latin word for wood, with panels built from a type of magnolia tree, using a traditional Japanese crafts technique without screws or glue to hold it together.
  • With timber, a material we can produce by ourselves, we will be able to build houses, live and work in space forever.
  • The satellite will test the durability of wood in the extreme environment of space where temperatures fluctuate from -100 to 100 degrees Celsius every 45 minutes, even as objects traverse through sunlight and darkness.
  • The satellite will also gauge timber’s ability to reduce the impact of space radiation on semiconductors.
  • Wood is more durable in space than on Earth because there’s no water or oxygen that would rot or inflame it.
  • LignoSat is not entirely made of wood.
  • The satellite uses traditional aluminium structures and electronic components in a wood panel casing.
  • Its sensors will monitor how the wood reacts to the extreme space environment in the six months it will orbit the Earth
Renewable solution
  • Conventional satellites, made primarily of aluminium, tend to burn up in the Earth’s atmosphere at the end of their lives and generate aluminium oxides.
  • These gases can damage the planet’s protective ozone layer.
  • Add to this the concerns about the growing orbital population, including artificial mega-constellations like SpaceX’s Starlink broadband network, which currently houses 6,500 active satellites.
  • This is where LignoSat may have an advantage.
  • By substituting magnolia for aluminium, the satellite wouldn’t introduce damaging pollutants into the atmosphere when it falls back to Earth.
Source- Indian Express

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