Solar Sail Will Be Tested by NASA in Mission in 2022

Written by Valdemar Medeiros

Published on 15/07/2021 at 12:39

Vela de energia solar da NASAS – créditos: Olhar digital

Seja o primeiro a reagir!

Aiming To Replace Chemical Fuels In Traditional Rockets, NASA Will Launch A Solar Sail That Will Be Used As A Type Of Propulsor For Long-Duration Spacecraft Missions

The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) will conduct a mission to demonstrate and test the innovative solar sail in practice. The mission is named ACS3, which stands for Advanced Composite Solar Sail System, and is expected to launch next year. NASA’s solar sail is intended to be used as a type of propulsor for long-duration spacecraft missions.

Read Other Related News

NASA Moving Away From Chemical Fuels In Rockets To Use Solar Energy

The agency’s solar project will use an innovative telescoping rod system that extends in space to open the sail. The project will be able to propel NASA’s spacecraft by harnessing the radiation pressure from sunlight or a remotely projected laser.

Thus, it will no longer be necessary to use chemical fuels or nuclear sources to propel traditional rockets. NASA’s expectation is to send probes into deep space, where the new technology will be used for solar sails of up to 5,000 square feet.

ARTICLE CONTINUES BELOW

A Process That Can Take Less Than Half An Hour

When the sail reaches space, it will open its solar panels and extend four telescoping masts, each of which can reach up to 23 feet in length. Along with the masts, which are made from a reinforced and flexible polymer material with carbon fiber, will also be the solar sail fabric from NASA.

This entire testing process will take about 20 to 30 minutes, during which a set of cameras will record the procedure to assess the operation and final shape of the solar sail.

Once the sail is fully “open,” the mission will collect a series of data on the speed and acceleration achieved by the spacecraft when “pushed” by solar radiation.

NASA Studies The Possibility Of Creating A 2,000 Square Meter Solar Sail

The extendable rods created by NASA are 75% lighter and experience 100 times less thermal distortion in space compared to the metal rods that were launched previously.

Another benefit is in the solar sails themselves, which are limited by the strength of the materials that comprise them and the electronic systems of the probes; that is, they have the capacity to operate indefinitely. NASA is currently working to develop new mechanisms where it will be possible to create solar sails of up to 2,000 square meters.

Solar Sail Will Be Tested by NASA in Mission in 2022

Aiming To Replace Chemical Fuels In Traditional Rockets, NASA Will Launch A Solar Sail That Will Be Used As A Type Of Propulsor For Long-Duration Spacecraft Missions

Read Other Related News

NASA Moving Away From Chemical Fuels In Rockets To Use Solar Energy

A Process That Can Take Less Than Half An Hour

NASA Studies The Possibility Of Creating A 2,000 Square Meter Solar Sail

The oldest tree in the world, alive since before the birth of Jesus Christ, is cut down in a scientific study and the case changes environmental preservation rules.

Seen from space, an image taken by an astronaut shows an unlikely oasis in the Saudi Arabian desert, protected by a terrain that slows the advance of sand, surrounded by green circles, remnants of an extinct lake and nearly 10,000 years of preserved history.

An entire island in the Pacific wants to surround itself with a colossal barrier against the ocean to try to escape increasingly violent waves and not be swallowed by the sea in the coming decades.

After ten days orbiting the Moon, science confirms that the astronauts of the Artemis II mission return with altered bodies.

With 7.4 trillion tons of artificial snow pumped in 10 years, an extreme operation could stabilize the West Antarctic ice sheet and prevent a sea level rise of more than 3 meters, but it would require snow cannons, ocean water, and energy on an almost industrial scale at the end of the world.

Peru built a tunnel at an altitude of 4,738 meters cutting through the Andes Mountains, and the road leading to it reaches 4,818 meters, making it the highest paved road in the entire world.

Through satellite monitoring, IDEAM confirms the extinction of the Cerros de la Plaza glacier in Colombia, which in the 19th century covered an area of 5 km² and now consists only of rocks.

A giant lake that no longer exists overflowed millions of years ago and unleashed the brutal force that carved the Grand Canyon; now science has finally proven how one of the planet’s most iconic landscapes was born.

Xiaomi launches new refrigerator with HyperOS system of 508 liters that promises to eliminate 99.9999% of viruses in 120 seconds and keep food fresh for up to 7 days; meet the Mijia Pro.

Without radar, without fines, and without physical barriers: a red road in India uses smart asphalt with different colors and textures to reduce vehicle speed and protect wildlife in a natural and efficient way.

With 5.6 trillion tons of natural hydrogen beneath the Earth, 26 times the known oil and more energy than all the natural gas in the world, the new gold rush is already mobilizing Bill Gates, Amazon, and Petrobras.

Solar Sail Will Be Tested by NASA in Mission in 2022

Aiming To Replace Chemical Fuels In Traditional Rockets, NASA Will Launch A Solar Sail That Will Be Used As A Type Of Propulsor For Long-Duration Spacecraft Missions

Read Other Related News

NASA Moving Away From Chemical Fuels In Rockets To Use Solar Energy

A Process That Can Take Less Than Half An Hour

NASA Studies The Possibility Of Creating A 2,000 Square Meter Solar Sail

The oldest tree in the world, alive since before the birth of Jesus Christ, is cut down in a scientific study and the case changes environmental preservation rules.

Seen from space, an image taken by an astronaut shows an unlikely oasis in the Saudi Arabian desert, protected by a terrain that slows the advance of sand, surrounded by green circles, remnants of an extinct lake and nearly 10,000 years of preserved history.

An entire island in the Pacific wants to surround itself with a colossal barrier against the ocean to try to escape increasingly violent waves and not be swallowed by the sea in the coming decades.

After ten days orbiting the Moon, science confirms that the astronauts of the Artemis II mission return with altered bodies.

With 7.4 trillion tons of artificial snow pumped in 10 years, an extreme operation could stabilize the West Antarctic ice sheet and prevent a sea level rise of more than 3 meters, but it would require snow cannons, ocean water, and energy on an almost industrial scale at the end of the world.

Peru built a tunnel at an altitude of 4,738 meters cutting through the Andes Mountains, and the road leading to it reaches 4,818 meters, making it the highest paved road in the entire world.

With 5.6 trillion tons of natural hydrogen beneath the Earth, 26 times the known oil and more energy than all the natural gas in the world, the new gold rush is already mobilizing Bill Gates, Amazon, and Petrobras.

U.S. researchers publish the first national map of natural hydrogen, placing 30 states on the radar and changing what was known about clean energy in the American underground.

Solar-powered ice factory in the Amazon that eliminated a 5-hour trip to Manaus, prevents the loss of up to two-thirds of the fish, and now ensures income for more than 30 riverside families.

Every time a river flows into the sea, an amount of energy equivalent to a 120-meter waterfall is silently wasted, but Japan has just inaugurated the world’s first power plant that captures this waste and transforms it into electricity 24 hours a day without sun, wind, or fuel.

Silicon Valley bets on a 100-hour battery that uses carbon and oxygen to store renewable energy for days and could turn a little-known chemical system into an alternative to critical metal batteries to tackle prolonged blackouts.

Through satellite monitoring, IDEAM confirms the extinction of the Cerros de la Plaza glacier in Colombia, which in the 19th century covered an area of 5 km² and now consists only of rocks.

A giant lake that no longer exists overflowed millions of years ago and unleashed the brutal force that carved the Grand Canyon; now science has finally proven how one of the planet’s most iconic landscapes was born.

Xiaomi launches new refrigerator with HyperOS system of 508 liters that promises to eliminate 99.9999% of viruses in 120 seconds and keep food fresh for up to 7 days; meet the Mijia Pro.

Without radar, without fines, and without physical barriers: a red road in India uses smart asphalt with different colors and textures to reduce vehicle speed and protect wildlife in a natural and efficient way.

With 5.6 trillion tons of natural hydrogen beneath the Earth, 26 times the known oil and more energy than all the natural gas in the world, the new gold rush is already mobilizing Bill Gates, Amazon, and Petrobras.