{"id":20367,"date":"2025-05-02T17:00:07","date_gmt":"2025-05-02T15:00:07","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/wp.amber.com.pl\/gdanski-bursztyn-leci-w-kosmos\/"},"modified":"2025-12-07T18:45:37","modified_gmt":"2025-12-07T17:45:37","slug":"gdansk-amber-is-flying-into-space","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/amber.com.pl\/en\/aktualnosci\/gdanski-bursztyn-leci-w-kosmos\/","title":{"rendered":"Gdansk amber flies into space!"},"content":{"rendered":"

As early as 29 May 2025, a piece of amber from Gda\u0144sk\u2019s Sobieszewo Island will embark on a journey... out of this world. Literally. Together with the IGNIS mission and Polish astronaut Dr S\u0142awosz Uzna\u0144ski-Wi\u015bniewski, it will fly to the International Space Station to become the first amber in history to leave Earth's atmosphere. This event bridges millions of years of history with modern science \u2013 and proudly promotes Gda\u0144sk as the World Capital of Amber. <\/strong><\/p>\n

The Sobieszewo Treasure \u2013 amber from the beach to the stars<\/strong><\/p>\n

The hero of this mission is a small yet exceptional piece of Baltic amber, found on the beach in Sobieszewo after a storm. Naturally transparent, light yellow, with a mass of 6.27 g \u2013 this is the very specimen that will fly into outer space. Its smaller half (4.27 g) remains on Earth, in the collections of the Amber Museum in Gda\u0144sk. After the mission is completed, both parts will be tested and compared \u2013 scientists will check whether any changes occurred in the structure of the fossil resin in space. <\/p>\n

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The project not only promotes Gda\u0144sk as the World Amber Capital, but also has scientific value \u2013 emphasises Waldemar Ossowski, Director of the Gda\u0144sk Museum. \u2013 In our laboratory, the amber has been examined in detail and we have confirmed that it is authentic Baltic amber. Sending this sample into outer space will allow us to check how fossil resin reacts to the conditions of cosmic radiation and weightlessness. This is valuable knowledge for future research.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

Space ambassador of Gda\u0144sk
<\/strong>
The idea for amber to join this prestigious mission came from the Marshal of the Pomeranian Voivodeship, Mieczys\u0142aw Struk. The piece was handed over by Robert Pytlos, the amber officer at the Gda\u0144sk City Hall, who has been promoting the city's amber heritage for years. Thanks to their involvement, the symbol of Gda\u0144sk will find itself in the company of the greatest icons of Polish culture and science: a fragment of Copernicus's work, Chopin's manuscript, Szymborska's poems and... Polish diacritic marks. This is a fantastic form of promotion for Gda\u0144sk, but also a beautiful metaphor \u2013 Gda\u0144sk shows that amber, which is part of the city's history and identity, also has a future. Even in space.<\/p>\n

Amber \u2013 a bridge between generations and planets<\/strong><\/p>\n

Although amber was formed around 40 million years ago, it still holds immense power of influence. For centuries it was a symbol of wealth, an amulet, an ornament and a trade object \u2013 in ancient Rome it was valued more than gold. Today it is once again showing its multidimensional face.<\/p>\n

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Amber has been with us for generations \u2013 almost every one of us probably has a piece of it at home, which is why, symbolically, we are all part of this cosmic journey \u2013 summarised Lidia Popiel, the Ambassador of Amber. \u2013 Amber is not just a beautiful raw material \u2013 it is a symbol of history, tradition and modernity that unites us and reminds us that we are a community. This is extremely important in today's world.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

From the museum to orbit and back<\/strong><\/p>\n

Before amber set off on its furthest journey, it was thoroughly examined in the laboratory of the Amber Museum in Gda\u0144sk. Spectroscopic analysis confirmed its origin and age \u2013 around 40 million years. Sending one of the halves into space is an unprecedented event in the history of museology. Upon return, the two parts will meet again \u2013 this time at the permanent exhibition in the Amber Museum, where everyone will be able to see\u2026 what amber from the stars looks like.<\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Already on 29 May 2025, a piece of amber from Gdansk's Sobieszewo Island will embark on an... unearthly journey. Together with the IGNIS mission and Polish astronaut Dr. S\u0142awosz Uzna\u0144ski-Wi\u015bniewski, it will fly to the International Space Station to become the first amber ever to leave the Earth's atmosphere. <\/p>","protected":false},"author":4,"featured_media":20366,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"slim_seo":{"title":"Gda\u0144ski bursztyn leci w kosmos! - Amber Portal","description":"As early as 29 May 2025, a piece of amber from Gda\u0144sk\u2019s Sobieszewo Island will set off on a... heavenly journey. Together with the IGNIS mission and Polish astronaut Dr S\u0142awosz U"},"_slim_seo_primary_term_category":0,"_slim_seo_primary_term_post_tag":0,"_slim_seo_primary_term_sekcja":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"sekcja":[],"class_list":["post-20367","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-informacje"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/amber.com.pl\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/20367","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/amber.com.pl\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/amber.com.pl\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/amber.com.pl\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/4"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/amber.com.pl\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=20367"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/amber.com.pl\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/20367\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/amber.com.pl\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/20366"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/amber.com.pl\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=20367"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/amber.com.pl\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=20367"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/amber.com.pl\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=20367"},{"taxonomy":"sekcja","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/amber.com.pl\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/sekcja?post=20367"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}