3 ms·
> just like a sail on a boat doesn't have to push you directly downwind I'm not a sailor, but doesn't this rely on the force of water on the keel, to avoid bei
by abeppu 2y ago
> just like a sail on a boat doesn't have to push you directly downwind
I'm not a sailor, but doesn't this rely on the force of water on the keel, to avoid being pushed laterally?
> When in orbit around earth, thrust in the direction of your orbit (prograde) causes you to gain energy and altitude, and retrograde thrust does the opposite.
For station-keeping purposes, when should you prefer a solar sail as versus PV panels and an ion drive?
- zardo 2y ago> I'm not a sailor, but doesn't this rely on the force of water on the keel, to avoid being pushed laterally? The analogy with sailing is actually kind of weak. Since you get elastic collisions with photons on the sail, you can (approach) applying force at 90 degrees from the direction of the light. Unlike with actual sailing, you can never have an "upwind" force component.