Znamiye did not fail. Znamiye-1 worked very well, Znamiye-2 worked only partially (deployed ok, but then got twisted up and did not maintain itself). They were not solar sails, but large reflectors. LOUIS FRIEDMAN
Sadly, the budget just submitted to Congress by the Administration drastically cuts space science and technology development including the in-space propulsion technology which was funding the solar sail work in NASA, and at JPL. I am not sure what will happen to their program. NASA has announced they will initiate a solar sail challenge sometime later this year and invited comments on the rules and prize(s). We, at The Planetary Society, are still planning to try again to fly a privately funded solar sail, and we are looking for additional sponsors and supporters. We are also considering the NASA Centennial Challenge -- although it seems that it might be more focussed on a L1 mission (a gravitational libration point) than on the first flight of a solar sail.
LOUIS FRIEDMAN
Slashdot Mirror
Znamiye did not fail. Znamiye-1 worked very well, Znamiye-2 worked only partially (deployed ok, but then got twisted up and did not maintain itself). They were not solar sails, but large reflectors. LOUIS FRIEDMAN
Sadly, the budget just submitted to Congress by the Administration drastically cuts space science and technology development including the in-space propulsion technology which was funding the solar sail work in NASA, and at JPL. I am not sure what will happen to their program. NASA has announced they will initiate a solar sail challenge sometime later this year and invited comments on the rules and prize(s). We, at The Planetary Society, are still planning to try again to fly a privately funded solar sail, and we are looking for additional sponsors and supporters. We are also considering the NASA Centennial Challenge -- although it seems that it might be more focussed on a L1 mission (a gravitational libration point) than on the first flight of a solar sail. LOUIS FRIEDMAN