3 ms·
If you unfurl a solar sail after perihelion, presumably you get more energy while nearer the sun, giving more of a "kick", and lower in the gravity well (would
by ta1243 1y ago
If you unfurl a solar sail after perihelion, presumably you get more energy while nearer the sun, giving more of a "kick", and lower in the gravity well (would oberth still apply for solar sail)
Your speed once you get to 1AU would I assume be far higher than if you had simply started at Earth
- KineticLensman 1y agoBut getting to the sun in the first place (from Earth) is a massive hassle as you have to lose the Earth's significant orbital speed to 'fall' inward [0]. Perhaps better just to use that fuel to head out. Operating a solar sail really close to the sun would also be challenging because of the massive heat. [0] https://www.nasa.gov/solar-system/its-surprisingly-hard-to-go-to-the-sun/ https://www.nasa.gov/solar-system/its-surprisingly-hard-to-g...