New Solar Sail Concept Chosen by NASA to Develop Demonstration Mission Will ChangeScience
Diffractive Solar Sailing project (solardiffractive sail) was selected for Phase III research under NASA's Innovative Advanced Concepts (NIAC) program. NASA's Advanced Concepts Institute is the agency's program for the development of far-reaching, long-term advanced concepts. Phase III aims to strategically transition the NIAC concepts with the greatest potential impact, not only for use by NASA, but also by other government agencies or commercial partners.
Similar to a sailboat using the wind to cross the ocean, solar sails usethe pressure of sunlight to propel the ship through space. Existing designs of reflective solar sails tend to be very large and thin. In addition, they are limited by the direction of sunlight, resulting in a trade-off between power and navigation.
In contrast, diffractive light sailswill use small grids embedded in thin films. They use a property of light known as diffraction. It causes light to spread out as it passes through a narrow opening. This will allow the spacecraft to use sunlight more efficiently without compromising maneuverability.
The research team will receive $2 million withintwo years to continue technology development in preparation for a potential future demonstration mission. The project is led by Amber Dubill of the Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory in Laurel, Maryland.
Phase III work will optimizesail material and conduct ground testing in support of this concept mission. Orbits passing over the sun's north and south poles are difficult to achieve using conventional thrusters. Lightweight diffraction sails, propelled by constant pressure from sunlight, could launch a constellation of scientific spacecraft into orbit around the poles of a star. This will ultimately deepen our understanding of the Sun and improve space weather forecasting capabilities.
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