3 ms·
An absurd amount of time can be a workable tradeoff depending on the purpose of the mission. Historically, both thrust and delta-V have been sorely constrained
by fixermark 11y ago
An absurd amount of time can be a workable tradeoff depending on the purpose of the mission.
Historically, both thrust and delta-V have been sorely constrained on spacecraft. This is trading a lot of thrust for an infinite* amount of dV, which is a really valuable trade.
(*Practically infinite. It runs out when the sun stops giving solar pressure ;) ).
- TheLoneWolfling 11y agoI am well aware of the potential advantages of solar sails for many things. I'm just saying they aren't the be-all and end-all. There are many things where they aren't particularly useful (for instance: anything time-constrained. Or anything that requires largeish maneuvers to be done in the outer solar system. And there are certain maneuvers that are... difficult... with a solar sail.) Also, it's not infinite, nowhere near. Among other things, solar radiation and solar wind will degrade the sail over time. Especially with a lot of the materials they suggest using (mylar, etc.)