Sayonara Posted August 10, 2004 Share Posted August 10, 2004 The Uchinoura Space Center in Kagoshima, Japan has launched the world's first solar sail in to orbit. Previously only seen in science fiction, solar sails represent a fuel-free method of constant acceleration. They are the first potential extrasolar transport technology mankind has managed to fully realise. http://www.isas.jaxa.jp/e/snews/2004/0809.shtml Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
alt_f13 Posted August 11, 2004 Share Posted August 11, 2004 I read NASAs solar sail is scheduled to launch in 2005. I'm willing to bet this announcement will push the US for first manned flight to MARS even harder. The next few years will be fairly exciting as far as space missions go methinks. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
5614 Posted August 11, 2004 Share Posted August 11, 2004 The next few years will be fairly exciting as far as space missions go methinks. i can only hope so, there hasnt been much action as such recently, on the space front! only the un-manned things to mars, about time theres some action there! this seems like a good beginning, lets all cheer it on! seriously! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheProphet Posted August 12, 2004 Share Posted August 12, 2004 Wow =) How nice.. Go Japan! Next of again si Russia isn't it? Or will the Americans be next? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sayonara Posted August 17, 2004 Author Share Posted August 17, 2004 The US and Russia are planning to launch a solar sail spacecraft. Check it out: http://www.guardian.co.uk/life/science/story/0,12996,1283828,00.html Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
atinymonkey Posted August 17, 2004 Share Posted August 17, 2004 Constructive use of cold war weaponry there. Top marks to the US and Russia for raiding the junk pile and recycling. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
palebluehuh Posted September 6, 2004 Share Posted September 6, 2004 Extrasolar transport technology? Doesn't the solar sail become as good as ineffective around Saturn or somesuch? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Thales Posted September 6, 2004 Share Posted September 6, 2004 Yes and no. I think Ion drives are probably more likely to aid in extrasolar exploration. Technically speaking solar sails become ineffective at the heliopause. In response to the original post, go Japan! 'Bout time NASA got a good kick in the bum. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MolecularMan14 Posted September 9, 2004 Share Posted September 9, 2004 What does ISAS stand for? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sayonara Posted September 14, 2004 Author Share Posted September 14, 2004 Extrasolar[/i'] transport technology? Doesn't the solar sail become as good as ineffective around Saturn or somesuch? Depends on what exactly happens when the thing reaches the boundary of the solar system. Theoretically it ought to have enough momentum by then to escape. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dave Posted September 14, 2004 Share Posted September 14, 2004 Depends on what exactly happens when the thing reaches the boundary of the solar system. Theoretically[/i'] it ought to have enough momentum by then to escape. Area of the sail has to be pretty damned big. Plus the amount of acceleration you're going to get from the particles diminishes a lot they further out you get. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sayonara Posted September 14, 2004 Author Share Posted September 14, 2004 Don't be mislead by the disjunction in the thread - I'm not holding out much hope that this particular sail is going to get very far. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dave Posted September 14, 2004 Share Posted September 14, 2004 No, I don't think it will either. But at least they're investigating other forms of propulsion, which is always good. However, the problem always remains of getting spacecraft off the Earth. Until they can build the craft in space or have some kind of space elevator, there's always going to be that problem, and it's going to hinder propulsion research to a certain degree. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bloodhound Posted September 14, 2004 Share Posted September 14, 2004 US is getting trashed in tech nowdays. Solar sails are absolutely useless for manned missions. and if we send one now. then it will probably get there in 4000 years time. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dave Posted September 14, 2004 Share Posted September 14, 2004 Don't discount it just yet. The closer you are to the sun, the more particles of stuff you're going to get because they won't have dispersed as much. If you launched a probe from say, Mercury, then it'd be going quite fast by the time it went past Earth. I agree that mankind just hasn't come up with any viable options for interstellar travel yet. Getting to Mars takes 2 years as it stands, let alone something 2 light years away. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
drz Posted September 15, 2004 Share Posted September 15, 2004 I remember watching a discovery science show about going to mars. In it, they described solar sails as being a means of making the voyage. They said in order to acheive the speed needed to reach mars in a decent amount of time, they would launch the craft towards the sun, effectively orbiting around it as close as possible. Once the craft was in line with the path to mars, the sail would be released, with the craft already moving at incredible speeds. Of course, this was also speculating on future possibilities, not realities. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Daveyboy Posted September 15, 2004 Share Posted September 15, 2004 How long would it take a solar sail propelled craft to get to mars from Earth. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dave Posted September 16, 2004 Share Posted September 16, 2004 I vaguely mention 3 years being read somewhere, but I don't think that's right. The problem is actually stopping the damn thing once you've got it started. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sayonara Posted November 10, 2004 Author Share Posted November 10, 2004 More Solar Sail news: Hurrah for communism! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Martin Posted November 10, 2004 Share Posted November 10, 2004 The US and Russia are planning to launch a solar sail spacecraft. Check it out: http://www.guardian.co.uk/life/science/story/0' date='12996,1283828,00.html[/quote'] here is a followup, giving the planned launch window March-April 2005 http://www.cnn.com/2004/TECH/space/11/10/solar.sail.ap/index.html I originally made a separate news thread about this, but I see now it can naturally segue off of Sayo's earlier post about the same thing. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RICHARDBATTY Posted November 10, 2004 Share Posted November 10, 2004 More Solar Sail news: Hurrah for communism! Is that an accurate depiction. The sail looks as if it will spin the craft. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Aardvark Posted November 11, 2004 Share Posted November 11, 2004 Technically speaking solar sails become ineffective at the heliopause. But the momentum built up by the solar sail will remain effective after leaving the solar system. Slowing due to friction in deep space should be negliable. Does anyone have any idea how fast it would need to be going to escape the solar systems gravitational pull? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sayonara Posted November 11, 2004 Author Share Posted November 11, 2004 Don't forget they also have to escape the "Strange Barrier Force" thing that was detected acting on Voyager. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gene Posted November 12, 2004 Share Posted November 12, 2004 how exactly can the sun's UV rays propel the spacecraft forward? is it the photons that would hit the solar cells and cause a foward motion of the spacecraft? i thought the solar cells would absorb the photons??? kind of confused how it works. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Aardvark Posted November 12, 2004 Share Posted November 12, 2004 i thought the solar cells would absorb the photons??? kind of confused how it works. Just because the solar cells absorb the photons doesn't alter the fact that the momentum of those photons has been transfered to the craft. And not all of the crafts sail will be made up of solar cells anyway. Think of the photons as cannon balls fired at you. If they hit you, it doesn't matter if they bounce off or if you catch them, they have still transfered momentum to you, pushing you away. The photons are like a constant stream of cannon balls fired at the craft, pushing it away. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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