Universe Today Podcast Episode 540: Planetary Society Deploys LightSail 2’s Solar Sail. What Does The Future Hold For Solar Sails?
Where you can travel in space depends on how much propellant you’ve got on board your rocket and how efficiently you can use it. But there’s a source of free propellant right here in the Solar System - the Sun - which is streaming out photons in all directions. You just need to catch them.
And right now, the Planetary Society’s new LightSail 2 spacecraft is testing out just how well it’ll work.
Light Sail 2 Photos:
http://www.planetary.org/blogs/jason-davis/lightsail-2-team-continues-tweaks-tests.html
Episode on Breakthrough Starshot
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3FWcEtXgK2g&list=PLbJ42wpShvml6Eg22WjWAR-6QUufHFh2v&index=146
Episode on Project Dragonfly
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=598UtgxFd1E&list=PLbJ42wpShvml6Eg22WjWAR-6QUufHFh2v&index=23
Audio Podcast version:
ITunes: https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/universe-today-guide-to-space-audio/id794058155?mt=2
RSS: https://www.universetoday.com/audio
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Team: Fraser Cain - @fcain / frasercain@gmail.com
Karla Thompson - @karlaii / https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCEItkORQYd4Wf0TpgYI_1fw
Chad Weber - weber.chad@gmail.com
References:
https://www.quora.com/What-is-the-maximum-speed-a-chemical-rocket-can-achieve
http://www.planetary.org/blogs/jason-davis/lightsail-2-has-launched.html
http://www.planetary.org/blogs/jason-davis/lightsail-2-team-continues-tweaks-tests.html
https://arc.aiaa.org/doi/abs/10.2514/6.2014-4435
https://www.nasa.gov/content/nea-scout
https://www.hou.usra.edu/meetings/lpsc2018/pdf/1406.pdf
http://www.planetary.org/blogs/guest-blogs/2017/20170925-solar-sail-dsg.html