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Young World
NEWSCAN
Origami dream
Photo: AP
Paper plane : Shaped like a space shuttle.
All of us love making and launching paper planes but now Japanese scientists have taken this one step ahead. Along with origami experts, they will construct a paper airplane to be launched from space. The idea is to study its flight back to earth and see how it’ll help redesign re-entry vehicles or probes. Shinji Suzuki, a professor at Tokyo University’s Department of Aeronautics and Astronautics, told the Associated Press, “It sounded
like a simply impossible, crazy idea. I gave it some more thought, and came to think it may not be ridiculous after all, and could very well survive if it comes down extremely slowly.” Early February saw a prototype pass a wind durability test, passing through a tunnel that mimicked conditions similar to what a spacecraft entering the Earth’s atmosphere would face. The 2.8 inches long and two inches wide plane came back without major damage. While the Japanese Aerospace Exploration Agency has agreed to feasibility studies for three years, critics point out that it is difficult to track paper planes or discover where they will land. But Suzuki feels that one has to learn only by trial and error. These tests are a dream come true for Takuo Toda, the head of the Japan Origami Airplane Association, who has helped Suzuki with the design. They point out that their findings could help design a shuttle that can cope with the friction and heat caused during re-entry into the atmosphere.
COMPILED BY R. KRITHIKA
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