NASA’s ACS3 mission will demonstrate the feasibility of solar sails. These could eventually enable “low-cost missions to the Moon, Mars, and beyond.”
NASA has confirmed the launch date for its groundbreaking Advanced Composite Solar Sail System mission.
ACS3 will continue what The Planetary Society started in 2021 with LightSail 2, demonstrating the feasibility of solar sails for ambitious, far-reaching space missions. While NASA says solar sails could enable low-cost missions to the Moon and Mars, some scientists believe they could send a probe to another star system.If all goes to plan on April 24, Rocket Lab’s Electron vehicle will deploy NASA’s CubeSat approximately 600 miles above Earth’s surface.
All it needs is the “equivalent to the weight of a paperclip resting on your palm”, NASA explained in a statement. The LightSail used an incredibly lightweight mylar material. Spread out, it captured enough photons from the Sun to propel itself upward., the ACS3 mission “sets out to prove its ability to sail across space, increasing access and enabling low-cost missions to the Moon, Mars, and beyond.”
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