Monday, February 04, 2013

NASA to Launch World's Largest Solar Sail in 2014 | SPACE NEWS

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NASA to Launch World's Largest Solar Sail in 2014 (Edt 400 px)

By Leonard David
www.space.com
1-31-13

      The largest solar sail ever constructed is headed for the launch pad in 2014 on a mission to demonstrate the value of "propellantless propulsion"— the act of using photons from the sun to push a craft through space.

Dubbed Sunjammer, the giant solar sail measures about 124 feet (38 meters) on a side and boasts a total surface area of nearly 13,000 square feet (1,208 square m, or one-third of an acre). The project is under the wing of NASA's Space Technology Program, within the agency's Office of the Chief Technologist.

NASA has contracted with a team of high-tech "solar sailors" at L'Garde Inc. of Tustin, Calif., to build Sunjammer.
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2 comments :

  1. Waste of our money.
    Should we not feed our people and fix our problems before dancing out to other neighborhoods?
    What would we tell "Other" lives on other planets? Our people are dying and living in squaller, but we have resources plenty for space exploration with no return on investment but to satisfy a curiosity.

    ReplyDelete
  2. The same sentiment was conveyed to Columbus by King Ferdinand . . ..

    Cheers,
    Frank

    ReplyDelete

Dear Contributor,

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