Sangbong Lee - Concept Research, SW & HW Development, Fiction, Production
Chihim Chik - Sound design and engineering
Bon Kim - Production

This project was created with the support and sponsorship of the Zer01ne and HEC

Zombie satellites are decommissioned, inactive satellites that unexpectedly resume operation and begin transmitting signals back to Earth. While official space agencies classify these objects as space debris, amateur enthusiasts have dubbed them “zombies” due to their intermittent signaling and half-dead nature—being electronically active yet functionally dead.

By drifting beyond human intent and control, these satellites acquire a strange independence and uniqueness, existing as entities that are forgotten yet undeniably real. This object allows one to contemplate the meaning of things situated in a liminal zone between functional death and physical reality, serving as a reflection of the self in a modern society where existential status is determined solely by productivity and utility. Ultimately, zombie satellites challenge the dominant classification system that strips the status of existence based on operation and efficiency, applying the same rigid logic to both humans and objects.

the project Space Odradek explores zombie satellites—defunct satellites that continue to transmit signals—and abandoned space objects, questioning whether things that have lost their purpose are truly dead or can emerge as new forms of existence. It seeks to reinterpret the remnants of technological civilization as artistic apparatuses, raising questions about the boundaries between usefulness and uselessness.

The name Odradek was adopted as a metaphor for zombie satellites, which escape human control and understanding once they lose their intended functionality. Unlike typical technological artifacts defined strictly by utility and precision, a defunct satellite orbiting to its own rhythm resists replacement and emerges as an autonomous, unclassifiable other.

“Anything that dies has had some kind of aim in life, some kind of activity, which has worn out; but that does not apply to Odradek.” - Franz Kafka, The Cares of a Family Man

Much like the enigmatic entity from Kafka's story—whose origin, purpose, and form remain ambiguous—the true reality of a zombie satellite becomes physically unreachable and conceptually ungraspable. Therefore, the project utilizes the name Space Odradek to reinterpret these discarded remnants, questioning the boundaries between utility and existence, and creating a speculative rendezvous point where the ungraspable entities on Earth orbit meet terrestrial artistic apparatuses.

The installation utilizes a digital display interface and a physical plotter to visualize the real-time presence of tracked satellites. The display graphically maps the satellite’s real-time orbital positions, azimuths, and trajectories using a blue and white aesthetic that pays homage to the 1960s space agencies that launched numerous zombie satellites, including the narrative’s central object, TRANSIT 5B-5.

Complementing this digital tracking, the plotter translates real-time satellite signals into geometric shapes on a continuously moving paper scroll. By recording the invisible status of these celestial objects as tangible physical traces over time, the plotter’s drawing mechanism materializes the project’s speculative narrative. This semantic function is particularly pronounced when TRANSIT 5B-5 is detected; as the satellite reaches its zenith and the signal strength maximizes, the plotter draws atypical, increasingly distorted quadrilaterals that visually embody the mysterious anomaly of the satellite.

By introducing a speculation about a fictional space archaeologist obsessed with unidentified satellite signals, the project transforms the exhibition space into a site where reality and fiction intersect. Combined with mechanical performances, this narrative device allows the audience to sensorially encounter and experience the spectral traces left by technology.

a fiction in the form of a government report provided at the exhibition hall transforms the physical space into a site where a fictional space archaeologist underwent a mysterious experience. This narrative device blurs the boundaries between fiction and reality, situating the audience within a speculative scenario and strengthening the narrative immersion in the extraordinary experience of encountering zombie satellites.

Specification

Size:
Unit: 80(width) X 80(depth) X 150(height) cm
Dimension: 6(width) X 6(depth) X 3(height) m

Materials:
Brass, Non-woven fabric, Plexi Glass, 3D printed PLA, VHF/UHF Antennas,
Aluminum profiles, Stepper motors, Microcontrollers, Custom electronics,
Active Speakers, Speaker stands

Software:
Openframeworks, SDR++, MAX/MSP, C Language

Colloquium:
Theses Exhibition (10. Apr - 13. Apr. 2026, Halle 1 / Speicher Xi A, Bremen)

Photography and Video by Sangbong Lee

[Theses Page Link]

Theses, Fiction PDF Request

Mail: sangbong@me.com