Japan’s Wild Idea for Solving The Space Junk Problem

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Many manmade objects that float above our atmosphere, in orbit, become space junk. Nobody can pretend that this problem doesn’t exist, as space debris can do a lot of harm such as jeopardizing the view of astronomers while they’re using telescopes. Furthermore, launches can become more difficult, and the space junk could even be lethal to astronauts.

As foxnews.com writes, NASA reported about a decade ago that a staggering 95% of manmade objects from orbit became space junk. Whether we’re talking about discarded rocket stages , defunct satellites, and other discarded mission materials, they all qualify as space debris. But Sumitomo Forestry, meaning a Japanese woodworking company, teams up with Kyoto University for developing a staggering new technology to solve the problem of space junk.

Wooden satellites to get rid of space junk

The idea is that wooden satellites would break up entirely, rather than slamming back to the Earth’s surface or leaving metallic particles floating above the atmosphere. Takao Doi, Kyoto University professor and Japanese astronaut, declared for BBC:

We are very concerned with the fact that 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.

The European Space Agency reveals that from 128 million pieces of debris from orbit, only around 34,000 are bigger than 10 cm. Many smaller objects are produced when larger ones collide. While debris can travel at speeds of about 20,000 mph, even the small particles become very dangerous.

Another major concern of some scientists is the one regarding the Starlink satellites that SpaceX deploys into space with the purpose to provide broadband internet access to remote regions of the world. About 12,000 satellites will arrive into the Earth’s orbit, and some believe that they’ll block the astronomer’s view of the sky. However, CEO Elon Musk assures us that there’s nothing to worry for.

 

Tiesha loves to share her passion for everything that’s beautiful in this world. Apart from writing on her beauty blog and running her own beauty channel on Youtube, she also enjoys traveling and photography. Tiesha covers various stories on the website.