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Russian SLBM Launches Solar Sail
Barbarian writes: "CNN reports that a Russian Submarine has launched a rocket containing a solar sail payload sucessfully. The mission is a 30 minute sub-orbital test. space.com has more details on the craft." Our earlier story. Another submitter noted that today is the 25th anniversary of the landing of the Viking 1 Mars probe. JPL has a Mars site, which is not responding as I write this. Maybe the Martians got to it. :)
First off, its not moving when they launch. Second, i'd imagine that they used it because they were able to get their hands on and modify an icbm from one, take a missile, remove the payload, insert the new payload.
Also, it seems that they wanted it to land somewhere in Eastern Russia, and it was such a short flight that I don't think it was going to orbit the earth. The submarine allows them to move to a location to the west so that they can better place its landing distance.
Solar sails do NOT use the solar wind for any signifigant portion of their impulse. They use light.
Photons hit sail. Photons impart energy (mass x velocity) to sail. Sail goes one way, photons go the other.
Don Negro
Don Negro
Perl 6 will give you the big knob. -- Larry Wall
Sub-orbital doesn't mean you didn't enter space - it means you didn't enter space with enough velocity to orbit the earth. Alan Sheppard (the first American in space) ahd a suborbital flight in the mercury program.
This test flight was only meant to ensure that the solar sail unfurls correctly IIRC. Be that as it may you would still be affected by solar 'wind' in a suborbital flight, just not as much as in you would in an orbital flight. This is especialy true of an extra-orbital flight outside the effect of the earth's magnetic field.
-Shieldwolf
just = (My)Opinion.toCents();
It was launched by the planetary society (of which I am a member) founded by Carl Sagan.
/ headlines/2001/launch_go.htm
Detail about the flight can be found here: http://www.planetary.org/html/news/articlearchive
It is one of the first non-government AND non-profit private ventures into space. It also marks the first solar sail launch into space (although the launch is sub-orbital).
-Shieldwolf
just = (My)Opinion.toCents();
It's 106 miles to Mars. We have a full sail of sunlight, half a pack of cigarettes, it's dark and we're wearing sunglasses. HIT IT!
This ought to be interesting to watch... a solar sail that didn't come out of an SF book. I like. The romance of space is not dead.
/Brian
Solar sail technology looks cool (cheap, free fuel, less bulk) but for some reason I think I'd still prefer the reassuring vibrations of a real engine. Solar Sails would never be able to push the craft faster than light so it's doubtful that the technology could take humans to other solar systems and back like we drive to the corner store.
Still, it'll be interesting to see where the scientists can take these ideas, a relaxing silent luxury cruise to Mars anyone? =)
"The solar sail launched by the russians today was fine until it unexplicably exploded 2 minutes after launch. This is a sad day for the space industry, as solar sails could have paved the way to cheap interplanetary exploration."
"In other news, Boeing announced today that they won't be conducting their planned missile defense system test today. An official at Boeing commented, 'We feel confident that our system will work. There is no reason to shoot down any more expensive American ICBMs...'"
;-)
Free as in *BUUURP!*