4 ms·
That's a science-fiction book, though. I'm still not getting how the ship could basically sail straight into the laser that's pushing it (e.g. decelerate). Th
by gherkin0 11y ago
That's a science-fiction book, though. I'm still not getting how the ship could basically sail straight into the laser that's pushing it (e.g. decelerate). The main sail is still getting pushed forward by the laser, even while the second sail is pushing backward (with the reflected light from the main sail).
- chiph 11y agoHis credentials in the field are pretty good, and his books are always hard-science (no elves or wizards, and very little hand-wavy stuff). https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Robert_L._Forward https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Robert_L._Forward If I recall the design correctly (forgive me - it's been over 15 years since I read it), there's a significant size difference in the sails. The larger sail collects photons from the distant laser and focuses them on the smaller "backwards facing" deceleration sail.