Carpenters could be as important as engineers to the future of space travel as scientists prepare to launch the world’s first wooden satellite.
Japanese scientists have swapped aluminum for wood in a new satellite design launching this summer.
The satellite, called Lignosat, will be made of magnolia wood and will be about the size of a mug.
And while it may not sound futuristic, using wood could help the aerospace industry combat harmful pollution.
If successful, the microsatellite could allow researchers to switch to more environmentally friendly building materials.
Japanese scientists plan to abandon traditional materials and use wood in a new satellite launched this summer
Lignosat will essentially be a small wooden box with solar panels on the outside and electronic equipment on the inside.
It will either be launched on an Orbital Sciences Cygnus supply ship to the ISS or a similar mission aboard a SpaceX Dragon later this year.
Once in orbit, Lignosat will operate for about six months before it is allowed to burn up in the atmosphere.
The researchers plan to include a number of experiments on board to see how well wood can withstand the harsh conditions of space.
In low Earth orbit, satellites experience temperatures ranging from -85°F (–65°C) to +257°F (125°C), depending on their altitude and solar exposure.
The concern is that the wooden panels in the satellite could warp or crack as temperatures change.
However, early research showed that wood stored in space-like conditions in the laboratory showed no measurable mass loss, signs of decay or damage.
Encouraged by these results, the researchers sent samples of various types of wood to the International Space Station, where they were held in space for almost a year.
Once again, the wood showed very little sign of decay, even after being exposed to extreme temperatures for twice as long as the satellite’s intended operating time.
Samples of wood sent to the ISS (pictured) were exposed to space for a full year but showed no significant signs of damage or decay
Koji Murata, head of the project, attributed this to the fact that there is no oxygen or living things in space that could decompose the wood.
“Wood’s ability to withstand these conditions amazed us,” Mr Murata said the observer said.
After looking at the results of the ISS tests, the scientists decided to make the final satellite from magnolia wood.
Compared to other types of wood tested, such as Japanese cherry, Magnolia proved to be the ideal wood to create a satellite.
In a statement, Kyoto University wrote that Magnolia exhibited “high workability, dimensional stability and overall strength.”
Scientists not only discovered that magnolia (pictured) is the perfect wood for making satellites because it is both strong and easy to work with.
Mr Murata added: ‘One of the missions of the satellite is to measure the deformation of the wooden structure in space.
‘Wood is durable and stable in one direction, but can be prone to dimensional changes and cracking in the other.’
But wood is not only stronger than you might expect, but it also has some surprising advantages over metals.
Wood does not block electromagnetic radiation, including the radio waves used to communicate with satellites in orbit.
This means that wooden satellites can keep all their antenna and radio equipment inside, simplifying their design and making it more robust.
However, the benefit that scientists are most interested in is the environmentally friendly properties of wood.
It is believed that there were 10,590 satellites in orbit as of September last year, of which around 8,800 are still functioning.
This growing amount of space junk is only expected to get worse in the coming years, as estimates suggest an additional 2,500 satellites will be launched annually between now and 2031.
There are now thousands of satellites and pieces of debris in orbit that risk adding aluminum pollutants to the atmosphere. This image shows the levels of space debris in low Earth orbit
This all adds up to about 11,000 tons of space junk hurtling around overhead.
And while this is a problem in itself, another problem arises when these satellites leave orbit.
Takao Doi, a Japanese astronaut and engineer from Kyoto University working on the project, said: ‘Any satellites that re-enter the Earth’s atmosphere burn up and create small aluminum oxide particles, which will remain floating in the upper atmosphere for many years.
“Eventually it will affect the Earth’s environment,” Mr Doi told the newspaper BBC.
Research from the University of British Columbia has shown that when satellites burn up, the aluminum left behind seriously damages the ozone layer.
The ozone layer is a blanket of gas that shrouds the planet, blocking harmful radiation from the sun and limiting the amount of sunlight that reaches the ground.
To prevent further damage to this protective barrier, engineers hope that wooden satellites will provide a sustainable alternative.
Instead of producing harmful particles, wooden satellites like Lignosat disappear in a cloud of smoke, leaving behind nothing more than biodegradable ash.