Japan Pop Scope｜Your Daily Dose of J-Culture & Trends

### Objective Summary * **Earth's Rotation is Accelerating:** Recent measurements on July 9, July 22, and August 5, 2025, show that the Earth's rotation has sped up, shortening the day by up to 1.36 milliseconds. These are among the shortest days on record since atomic clocks began. * **The "Leap Second" Problem:** To keep atomic time (UTC) in sync with the Earth's rotation, a "leap second" is sometimes added. However, due to the acceleration, a "negative leap second"—subtracting one second—may be necessary for the first time in history, possibly by 2029. * **Impact on Finance:** This seemingly small change has major implications for high-frequency trading (HFT) and global financial networks. HFT systems rely on hyper-precise timestamps (to the microsecond), and even a tiny time discrepancy can cause trading errors, system failures, or "flash crashes." * **Systemic Risks:** The time inconsistencies could affect GPS, telecommunicat...

On August 5, 2025, from a launchpad in New Zealand, something truly special happened. A Japanese space-tech company, iQPS, sent its QPS-SAR-12 satellite, affectionately named "Kushinada-I," into orbit. This wasn’t just another rocket launch; it was a mission named “The Harvest Goddess Thrives,” and it felt less like a fiery spectacle and more like the quiet, determined sowing of a new kind of seed. ### **Kushinada-I: Core Information** * **Developer**: iQPS (Institute for Q-shu Pioneers of Space), a space startup from Kyushu University, Japan. * **Satellite Name**: QPS-SAR-12, nicknamed "Kushinada-I" after the Shinto goddess of harvest. * **Launch Details**: * **Date**: August 5, 2025 * **Rocket**: Rocket Lab’s Electron * **Location**: Mahia, New Zealand * **Orbit**: Sun-synchronous circular orbit at approximately 575 km. * **Technology**: **SAR (Synthetic Aperture Radar)** imaging, which can see through clouds and darkness. * **Purpose**: To b...

--- First, let's lay out the objective facts about Japan's wooden satellite, LignoSat. * **Name:** LignoSat * **Developers:** Kyoto University and Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) – a collaborative project. * **Launch Date:** July 2024. * **Material:** Japanese cypress (Hinoki wood). * **Shape:** Small, cube-shaped satellite. * **Mission Objectives:** * To test how wood performs in the harsh space environment, including microgravity, radiation, and extreme temperature fluctuations. * Monitoring of wood degradation, cracking, and structural integrity. * Evaluating the natural shielding effect of wood against cosmic radiation. * Studying thermal expansion in space. * Understanding wood's combustion characteristics during re-entry to confirm its "zero-debris" promise. * **Why Wood? (Sustainability and Cost):** * **Environmental Benefits:** * **Zero Space Debris Pollution:** Unlike metals, wood is expected to burn up comp...