Linked Questions
18 questions linked to/from Puzzler - which spacecraft(s) incorporated real wood structural elements?
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Why is there a large wooden ball on Mariner 3's magnetometer?
Wood is good for certain niche space exploration applications, but the one below is not for spaceflight. According to the documentation for the archived photo:
Several spacecraft were built for the ...
- 148k
21
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8
answers
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Is there any way to land a rover on the Moon without using any thrusters?
Is there any way to land a rover on the moon without using any thruster, with the help of Thermocol, Cotton, Bubble wrap or any other packaging material, like we can receive from online shop?
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17
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1
answer
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Why did early satellites (e.g. China's Fanhui Shi Weixing) re-enter the atmosphere narrow end (nose)-first?
I was surprised to find out from @JohnnyRobinson's new answer that China's series of Fanhui Shi Weixing spacecraft (FSW) used impregnated oak heat shields. I found this in astronautix:
The capsule ...
- 148k
19
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3
answers
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Use of carbon monoxide as propellant on Mars
Is it possible to use carbon monoxide as propellant for a rocket?
For example, carbon dioxide from the atmosphere of Mars could be transformed to carbon monoxide and oxygen via photochemical ...
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20
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3
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Could a spacecraft be made out of wood?
Could a spacecraft use organic materials, like wood or bone or shell or other tissues, as an interface to the vacuum and radiation of space? Would wood outgas and crack up in space? I wonder if life ...
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6
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4
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First LED left on another planet⁺ by humans?
Light Emitting Diodes or LEDs are ubiquitous now, but I still remember riding my bike to Radio Shack and buying my first LED, checking the diagram on the back of the package, and getting a battery and ...
- 148k
12
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1
answer
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Is this smoke from Expedition 53 returning Soyuz capsule?
I was clicking through YouTubes and came across the NASA Video ISS Expedition 53 Landing in Kazakhstan (also here). I don't recall seeing such prominent and continuous smoke from returning Soyuz ...
- 148k
8
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1
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Using bamboo as space construction material
Due to the miracle of biology a bamboo plant can transform water, atmosphere, sunlight, and nutrients into a long and stable rod or tube at a incredible growth speeds (some species can grow 90cm/35 ...
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2
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2
answers
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Is it possible for small satellites to orbit in MEO or GEO?
I am researching satellite technology, and in particular I am looking at the rise and implications of smallsat technology. As far as I know, there are currently no satellites beyond LEO that would be ...
5
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1
answer
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White papers on alleged 1960s Chinese wooden ablative reentry heat shield
Popular sources, like Vintage Space and New Scientist, allege that the Chinese experimented with (oak?) wood ablative heat shields for manned reentry vehicles in the 1960s, but I have not been able to ...
0
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1
answer
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What was the first piece of wood to reach the far side of the Moon? Or the first spacecraft?
Chang'e-4 is the first lander/rover mission to reach the far side, but probably doesn't have any wood on it.
What was the first piece of wood that landed on the far side of the Moon, and what was the ...
- 148k
2
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1
answer
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Is the entire underside of Schiaparelli one big crushable-structure?
The caption in this Space dot com video says that Schiaparelli will drop the last two meters, and the shock will be absorbed by a crushable structure.
It is described in the text accompanying this ...
- 148k
3
votes
1
answer
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Can you use a light sail to achieve a survivable landing anyplace in our solar system?
Current answers at the new question Can you launch a probe to the Moon using a laser propelled craft? points out getting to the moon is not the problem, landing on it is.
This answer suggests that ...
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7
votes
1
answer
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Advantages/disadvantages of wood for surface of cubesat?
Generally aluminum and kapton are the exterior surfaces of a cubesat. A Finnish/ESA cubesat, the WISA/Woodsat was launched that has plywood panels. It has protection against offgassing and very low ...
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1
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1
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Was the famous SPICE package of programs, utilities and data kernels named after "Melange" found on the planet Arrakis?
This question is NOT about a fictional planet:
This question is about NASA JPL history and the naming of SPICE. It is not primarily about the fictional planet Arrakis nor the fictional drug Melange ...
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