While the most powerful rocket in history begins its tests and the new crew of the Artemis mission is presented, the space race towards other planets should focus on achieving an alternative impulse to fuel: the solar winds. That is the conclusion of the scientists.
Once upon a time… Since it began its flight on September 5, 1977, the Voyager 1 probe has done nothing but amaze us. It left our solar system on August 25, 2012, becoming the first spacecraft to do so. Two years later it experienced a “tsunami” of coronal mass ejections from the Sun that continued at least until December 15, 2014, further confirming that the probe is in interstellar space. It studied the weather, magnetic fields, and rings of the two gas giants (Saturn and Jupiter) and was the first probe to provide detailed images of their moons. It is currently 23.816 billion km from Earth and is the most distant human-made object.. Except for her sister Voyager 2, there have been few comparable satellite missions in recent years.
Cost is the main hurdle, but time frame is also a factor. The design of such long journeys takes years to calculate, and the planning and construction of a space vehicle would take about a decade. Considering the time it would take a satellite to reach distant targets, it means our next look at the stars probably won’t be anytime soon . Unless new winds blow.
In a report released this week and led by Slava Turyshev of the California Institute of Technology’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory, the same institution that launched the Voyager probes , Turyshev (along with nearly 30 scientists from the United States and Europe) proposes a new means of of travel that could take us to the stars more quickly and cheaply.
What a Blizzard on Jupiter
Solar navigation is a process by which the pressure generated by the Sun’s radiation is harnessed for propulsion. This technology proved its worth in a successful 2019 mission by the Planetary Society’s LightSail-2 project. Turyshev’s team proposes fusing miniature satellite units with a solar-powered process that would create a cheap, lightweight, fast-travel system. Basically a “flock of comets” that would take flight thanks to the solar wind, without the need for fuel.
“Solar sails gain thrust by using lightweight, highly reflective materials that reflect sunlight to propel a spacecraft while it is in space,” the authors explain. The continuous pressure of photons from the sun provides thrust, eliminating the need for heavy and expendable propellants used on board and in chemical and electrical propulsion systems, which limit mission lifetimes and viewing locations.”
Added to this is that sails are much less expensive than the heavy equipment currently used for propulsion, and that continuous pressure from solar photons makes thrust constantly available for a wide range of maneuvers, such as hovering. or rapid changes of orbital plane.
Solar sails and miniaturization “have advanced in the last decade to the point where they can enable inspiring and affordable missions to reach farther, faster , deep into the outer regions of our solar system. Fast, cost-effective, and maneuverable sailboats that can travel outside the solar system open up new opportunities for affordable exploration.”
With improved maneuverability, the spacecraft could easily carry small payloads to multiple destinations if needed, and can be docked with modular ships. The reliance on the Sun and the miniaturization of the shuttle, which does not require a dedicated launch site, will prove to be significant cost savings.
“A substantial reason for the high expenditures on these types of missions is our current reliance on slow and expensive chemicals, which makes exploration of the solar system unsustainable . A new approach is needed.” And with NASA’s recent support for this project, it would be easy to get it.