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Cosmos Solar Sail Getting Close To Launch
digitalcaffeine writes "The Guardian is reporting that US and Russian scientists are planning to launch a spacecraft that will use solar sails to move about in space. This venture, called Cosmos 1, is backed by the Planetary Society and Cosmos Studios. The spacecraft, finally due for launch in late 2004 or early 2005, will use a converted SS-N-18 submarine launched ballistic missile fired from beneath the Barents Sea to get it into a 800 x 1000 km elliptical orbit. It will then unfurl its 15m sails and start moving about. So, for all the governments that have been working on a similar project, the first solar-sailed spacecraft is going to be from a private venture." An update on the official site notes that "The world's first solar sail craft is nearing completion. All electronic systems are now flight qualified and were delivered to the spacecraft for final assembly and testing" - we previously reported on the Cosmos Project and the efficacy of solar sails.
will it be ready in time to get Count Dooku back to Coruscant?
Drill baby drill - on Mars
... most people expect it sail off the edge of the world.
Unknown host pong.
Now that we have solar sails, it's only a matter of time before we need to start worrying about space pirates.
Where's Samus when you need her?
How does a private company get ahold of a submarine-launched ballistic missle? We could sure use one of these for our current... uh... project. Where can I get one?
Osama Bin Laden
Helpful if we ever have a whale-seeking probe come to our planet and we need to generate some quick power.