NASA shares first photo of its amazing solar sail in operation
Solar sails in space have been in the imagination of science fiction authors for at least two centuries. On paper, the technology harnesses the pressure of sunlight to propel an object without the need for fuel. In early 2024, NASA began testing the method with its prototype spacecraft: the Advanced Composite Solar Sails System (ACS3).
Although the solar sail craft took off in April , the deployment mechanism was first activated in space at the end of August. Over the past two weeks, the microwave-sized vehicle has finally tested its navigation and orientation capabilities using only the sail system. NASA is currently analyzing the data from this crucial stage of the flight.
With all this information gathered, the space agency
has shared
the first official photograph taken by ACS3 itself with the sail deployed as it moves forward. The image has the potential to become historic if solar sail propulsion technology prospers.
A few days later, the space agency shared the moment when the solar sail crossed the sky. The image is 13 seconds long. Just as predicted, the mechanism takes on an outstanding shine. “Like a diamond in the sky,” they referred to its passage.
The potential of space sails
The ship was able to successfully deploy an 80-square-meter structure using mechanical arms. The sails moved the ship to an altitude of 1,000 kilometers, using only the bounce of the photons that hit them. To put this into context, the International Space Station operates 400 kilometers above the Earth’s surface.
If all goes well with ACS3, NASA will scale up the technology with larger ships and sails. On its own, the current structure responsible for spreading the arms can support sails measuring 500 square meters. NASA engineers estimate that the current limit for a solar sail is 2,000 square meters.
Spacecraft or satellites that use sails will have different objectives than those that use conventional propellants. Those that use photons as a motor will be observation missions to specific places that are not commercial priorities. The BepiColombo probe currently circling Mercury or the Parker probe going to the Sun may be examples of this. “Because solar sails use the Sun’s energy, they can provide a constant thrust to support missions that require unique observation points, such as those that seek to understand our star and its impact on Earth,” explains NASA.
Solar sails could be the next super-bright objects in the sky. The space agency warns that when the structure is deployed it takes on a glow similar to a shining star in the sky.
