NASA Set To Launch Solar NanoSail Into Space 104
Posted
by
timothy
from the solar-powers-activate dept.
from the solar-powers-activate dept.
An anonymous reader writes "Earlier this year the Japanese space agency successfully deployed and used a solar sail to propel its spacecraft Ikaros, and now NASA announced plans this week for its own solar sail mission. This fall it will launch the NanoSail-D into orbit 400 miles up with a Minotaur IV rocket. Once deployed, it will orbit for 17 weeks, proving the technology and allowing astronomers to snap lots of photos."
Space tourists? (Score:2, Insightful)
Proving technology that already works? (Score:5, Insightful)
Nanosail D was originally to launch on one of the ill-fated Falcon 1 test flights, at which time it would have indeed been proving the technology. But now that JAXA have not only proved the technology, but applied it to interplanetary travel, it seems a bit moot.
Re:Proving technology that already works? (Score:4, Insightful)
NASA have already sent five probes out of the solar system. Both pioneers, both voyagers and New Horizons. Thats a pretty good record IMHO.
And before you use a solar sail in deep space it makes sense to test one in low earth orbit. Its cheaper that way.
Re:The Apollo crews would be ashamed. (Score:5, Insightful)
Isn't that why NASA was founded? To be America's 'me-too' reply to Sputnik.
Re:Space tourists? (Score:1, Insightful)
Is this all we are now, just "snapping lots of photos"?
Yeah the schools have been working on that for a long time now. We can't have real adventure like sending people into space to do new things anymore because someone could get hurt. We also can't encourage our best and brightest to dare to take risks and truly innovate because that might hurt the feelings of people who achieve less. Like those soccer games in the public schools where no one wins because merit-based competition might make someone who loses feel bad. So we snap lots of photos because that's nice and safe.
Re:Space tourists? (Score:5, Insightful)
It's a technology testbed, not a scientific instrument. That said, NASA and its affiliated institutions have probably done more science with photographs than most R&D departments have with million-dollar laboratories.
Re:Proving technology that already works? (Score:3, Insightful)
Interstellar light sails won't be much use to us until we can build infrastructure to boost them out of the solar system. Inside the orbit of (say) Mars, however they could be quite useful once we get our act together. Maybe Mercury will be our first serious outpost away from Earth.
Doing the hard stuff was easier when NASA had a blank cheque to spend. Now they don't. They need to take baby steps and make every bit of research count.
Re:Proving technology that already works? (Score:3, Insightful)
So you think "real scientists" wouldn't see the need for this technology demonstration? Because in their highly scientific view they'd see no difference between this and what the Japanese did, and thus no need to test those non-existent differences?
It's not NASA that's an embarrassment.