4 ms·
Since there are no gravity loads in space, one could have humongous mirrors with this technique. Not an expert but I imagine thermal load design becomes an issu
by Gravityloss 4y ago
Since there are no gravity loads in space, one could have humongous mirrors with this technique.
Not an expert but I imagine thermal load design becomes an issue too.
Current rocket fairings can be 5 m in diameter and 20 m in length. One could roll up a 20 m diameter mirror in there....
- dylan604 4y agoOr 40, 60, 80, depending on if you fold it couple of times before rolling it.
- DennisP 4y agoAnd if we get anything like the launch prices SpaceX has talked about for Starship, we could launch a lot of them. There's still the cost of the telescope itself, but it's probably possible to save money on that when cheap launch lets you build heavier, and mass-produce the telescope.
- Gravityloss 4y agoHmm if the mirror has a large hole in the center, you can have one cut and roll it along the tangent. The major radius can be big and the rolled mirror only be the length of the minor radius. Ie if you have a 45 meter circumference and 5 m hole, the major radius is 22.5 meters but the minor radius is only 20 meters and it can roll into 20 meters. It will have one discontinuity though that would cause artefacts and might destroy any advantages from the additional size.
- klyrs 4y agoMicrometeorites and solar wind seem like they'd be pesky obstacles to a membrane. JWST experienced a strike almost immediately after it was deployed, which is quite tragic. The bigger the target, the easier it is to hit.
- skykooler 4y agoHowever, the bigger the mirror, the smaller the effect of an individual micrometeoroid strike.