American artist Trevor Paglen has launched the first artwork into space, but it is yet to be activated because of fallout from the US government shutdown.
The Orbital Reflector, a 30-metre-long reflective, diamond-shaped balloon made from a material similar to Mylar ? a form of plastic sheet made from polyester resin ? is currently orbiting the earth waiting for clearance to be released.
When it is deployed it will be the first "purely artistic" object in space that does not have any military, commercial or scientific interest.
US government shutdown delays deployment
However, the partial US government shutdown from 22 December 2018 to 25 January 2019 means that the artwork has not yet been released. Instead it has been travelling in the earth's low orbit unactivated for three months. A brick-sized box containing the inflatable artwork was launched into the earth's low orbit on 3 December 2018 as part of a greater load of 64 satellites on Elon Musk's SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket.

Paglen's collaborators on the project, Nevada Museum of Art, require the go-ahead from the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to deploy the artwork. In a statement written during the US governmental shutdown, the museum explained that they were unable to receive the go-ahead from the government department.
Before permission can be granted, a division of the US Air Force must identify each of the 64 satellites. This task has not yet been completed, even though the government is now back u...