The US space agency NASA has launched a new advanced composite solar sail system with the help of RocketLab's Electron rocket, UNN reports .
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The satellite with the solar sail turns on the probe and tries to make the first contact with the Earth. The 80-square-meter sails were deployed in about 25 minutes.
If conditions are favorable, the spacecraft will even be visible from the Earth.
Thanks to the reflective material of the sails, it will be as bright as the star Sirius, the brightest in the night sky.
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Solar sails use the pressure of sunlight to propel them.
Photons hit the sail and, reflecting off it, push the vehicle forward.
Just like a sailboat that turns its sails to catch the wind, this spacecraft can also adjust its orbit by tilting the sail.
NASA підтвердило місію Dragonfly на супутник Сатурна Титан17.04.24, 17:58