... those crazy Japanese! utterly pointless but fun!

I've wanted to know what would happen to a paper plane launched from orbit since I was a kid back in the 70s! I've always maintained that a paper plane would survive such a descent because it's surface area to mass ratio is too great for it to be able to sustain such high speeds. Since the atmosphere becomes progressively thinner with altitutude, the plane will have plenty of time to slow down long before it reaches the troposphere.

Most likely, it will be YEARS before the plane reaches the ground, and unless it is waterproof it probably won't survive that long anyway. Given that 70% of the Earth's surface is ocean, and vast areas of land are still only sparsely populated, the odds of anyone finding it when it does land are extremely slim. What they should do is attach one of those tiny radio tags scientists use to track bird migrations to it. Then the experiment could also provide useful information about air movements in the Earth's upper atmosphere, as well as allowing everyone to see where, and if, it does come down.

Written on the inside of the paper plane:

"I'll have 50% of what you get for this on ebay"

An origami space station?

Actually, that's not a bad idea...

Well, that's *this* year's IGNobel peace prize sorted out then.

get a paper airplane that could get into orbit I would take it a bit more seriously.

Now THIS is the way the world should be.

Nah my paper planes were well fast.

I would have to have an asbestos nose-cone added to stop it burning up

if I make it out of photopaper it might survive water for a bit, but the print on it would come off. Epson ink just isnt as good as it used to be :)

Maybe a race with differing designs?

Western scientists are all too caught up with how important they are and how their prediction on global warming is the most important.

There will be far more interest in this than any recent space project, guaranteed.

A space station made of paper would be excellent for the Japanese. It could withstand earthquakes.

Marvellous idea...it's just that now I'm going to have the Quo's "paper plane" playing in my head all day..

The Denim, ta.

" ... air crash investigators have determined that the engine failure was caused by a collision with a message of peace inscribed on a Japanese paper plane at 30,000 feet ..."

Seriously though, this could potentially have actual implications. There must be some use for such a lightweight, slow re-entry vehicle.

Actually, this can be quite an interesting experiment. If it actually survives reentry (that is: Doesn't flash into ash), it would give some weight to the "reusable space flight vehicle" argument, especially since the current version of such a vehicle (the space shuttle) has about the same flight characteristics as a brick. A better (aerodynamically) glider may take longer to pass through the atmosphere, but have less chance of incinerating its biological cargo...

:)

//Svein

Competitors should be a big white butterfly, a long blue paper plane and a Deutche car.

Ironically, the Americans would never try this because they're too wound up with their own status quo...

Maybe they should just empty a big box of dollar bills out of the ISS in order the "reawaken public interest in space flight" or somesuch.

Sam, I wasn't thinking that...until I read your comment! You dirtbag! ( Dah-dah-dah-dah-dah-dah-dahhhhh! Arggghhh! )

All your space are belong to us!

Isn't... errr... like the 95% of all space missions splendily and utterly pointless? (except for comm satellites, of course)

Seriously, space missions are as useless as studying dinosaurs... or the Voyager missions... or...

* Posted anoymously: I don't want to be disturbed while I dwell in my self-induced dark ages

International Space Stationery?

Let's throw a paper aeroplane out of a SPACE STATION, just because...we can, huzzaaah!!!

"" Ah! We come in peace, shoot to kill, shoot to kill, shoot to kill;

we come in peace, shoot to kill, shoot to kill, men. ""

.. Space Stationary.. bwahahah hahahaha!

Good show :D

If they make it out of the toilet paper my grandmother used to have it'll be utterly waterproof and indestructible - it should survive the trip easily.

Flames, cuz its the nearest thing to a rocket engine icon for something heading down.

Excellent experiment!

..."for great justice", shurely?

...just attach a motor to get it out of orbit...

really pushing the envelope with this one :P

The de-orbit burn is gona be interesting LOL

"It's really overwhelming that a boomerang will go to space instead of me."

Maybe, but probably reassuring, if it turns out that it doesn't always come back...

Great newspaper though. Surprised El Reg hasn't followed up on:

"Transport official caught forging train passes to get cash to buy model train set"

not to mention

"Frisky judge quits after biting sex shop employee"

Why not: "Save the Whales"?

Just add perfume and re-entry....