Japanese wooden satellite to tackle space debris

In an effort to reduce litter in space, scientists in Japan have created the world’s first satellite made of wood.

The biodegradable satellite is made of magnolia wood, which in experiments on the ISS proved to be particularly resistant to cracks, and offers an environmentally friendly alternative to the metal that satellites are currently made of. The satellite, developed in collaboration between universities in Kyoto, Japan, and a forestry company, is supposed to be launched from the USA later this summer.

“All the satellites which re-enter the Earth’s atmosphere burn and create tiny alumina particles, which will float in the upper atmosphere for many years. Eventually, it will affect the environment of the Earth,” Takao Doi, a Japanese astronaut and aerospace engineer warned recently, the Guardian reports.