First plywood satellite to be launched

[RichardG]

ESA flying payloads on wooden satellite

Sponsors for Woodsat include UPM Plywoodin Finland, among the largest plywood makers in the world.

“The base material for plywood is birch, and we’re using basically just the same as you’d find in a hardware store or to make furniture,” explains Woodsat chief engineer and Arctic Astronatics co-founder Samuli Nyman. “The main difference is that ordinary plywood is too humid for space uses, so we place our wood in a thermal vacuum chamber to dry it out. Then we also perform atomic layer deposition, adding a very thin aluminium oxide layer – typically used to encapsulate electronics. This should minimise any unwanted vapours from the wood, known as ‘outgassing’ in the space field, while also protecting against the erosive effects of atomic oxygen. We’ll also be testing other varnishes and lacquers on some sections of the wood.”

So if you get bored making cabinets…..

 

[Rorschach]

Awesome, just like everyone calls aluminium, "aircraft grade aluminium" we will now get everyone using "aerospace grade plywood".

 

[Yojevol]

Perhaps the turning fraternity could knock me up a ply satellite dish

 

[Richard_C]

I feel a Dan Dare remake coming on. Our plucky lads surviving in a luxury plywood capsule on the surface of Mars when the Mekon unleashes a plague of killer termites. "Cripes sir, what shall we do now? Run to the Zylbat Digby, it's our only hope. We'll have to take our chances with the Mekon's death ray"

(Is it only me that thinks Dominic Cummings is a dead ringer for the Mekon, aside from the green hue?)

 

[TRITON]

First ?,nonsense. I myself have launched a fair number of plywood satellites. Along with oak, pine and mahogany.

Normally they don't complete orbit and clatter into the corner of the workshop.

 

[RichardG]

I feel a Dan Dare remake coming on. Our plucky lads surviving in a luxury plywood capsule on the surface of Mars when the Mekon unleashes a plague of killer termites. "Cripes sir, what shall we do now? Run to the Zylbat Digby, it's our only hope. We'll have to take our chances with the Mekon's death ray"

Or we’re going to have to rely on Rustins 5 Star wood preserver and we know how that turned out last time. Plus I’ve heard that Mekon has nipped out to get an eye test despite being in isolation.

 

[Thingybob]

This is nothing new Star Trek , Blakes 7 ,Red Dwarf, Starwars have been using ply wood on thier space ships for years