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NASA to Launch Solar Sail

Posted by timothy on from the cue-bad-brains dept.

arbitraryaardvark writes "Physorg reports that NASA will launch a solar sail around the end of July. It'll be the first of its kind; a previous attempt blew up. It's a small proof-of-concept gizmo, not a full-on spaceyacht. Solar sails operate on photon pressure from sunlight. They are well known to science fiction readers, otherwise not so much." C-net has coverage, too.

1 of 147 comments (clear)

  1. Re:Rail Sail by Doc+Ruby · · Score: 0, Flamebait

    A launch loop would be held up at this altitude by momentum of the belt as it circulates around the structure, in effect it transfers the weight of the structure onto magnetic bearings at each end which support it.

    I don't really get that. What exactly keeps the heavy rail track lifted 80Km in the air across 1500 Km?

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