obtained from pink tenticle.com

http://www.pinktentacle.com/2008/01/origami-spaceplane-to-launch-from-space-station/
Origami spaceplane to launch from space station
16 Jan 2008

Researchers from the University of Tokyo have teamed
up with members of the Japan Origami Airplane
Association to develop a paper aircraft capable of
surviving the flight from the International Space
Station to the Earth's surface.

The researchers are scheduled to begin testing the
strength and heat resistance of an 8 centimeter (3.1
in) long prototype on January 17 in an
ultra-high-speed wind tunnel at the University of
Tokyo's Okashiwa campus (Chiba prefecture). In the
tests, the origami glider — which is shaped like the
Space Shuttle and has been treated to withstand
intense heat — will be subjected to wind speeds of
Mach 7, or about 8,600 kilometers (5,300 miles) per
hour.

A large spacecraft such as the Space Shuttle can reach
speeds of up to Mach 20 (over 15,200 mph) when it
re-enters the Earth's atmosphere, and friction with
the air heats the outer surface to extreme
temperatures. The much lighter origami aircraft, which
the researchers claim will come down more slowly, is
not expected to burn up on re-entry.

No launch date has been set for the paper spaceplane,
but Shinji Suzuki, an aerospace engineering professor
at the University of Tokyo, is thinking ahead. "We
hope the space station crew will write a message of
peace on the plane before they launch it," says
Suzuki. "We don't know where in the world the plane
will land, but it would be nice to send a message to
whoever finds it."