04.25.08
Space spiderwebs
Solar sails…
A solar sail with positively charged wires might be able to repel positive ions in the solar wind and thus propel itself through space (Courtesy of Pekka Janhunen)
Researchers created a short section of the tether using 25-micron-thick aluminium wire, which was ultrasonically bonded together in February. The samples were later destructively pull-tested (Image: University of Helsinki, Electronics Research Laboratory) A new type of solar sail has been woven by a team of scientists in Finland. The spiderweb-like sail is designed to catch the wind of ionised gas that blows from the Sun, carrying spacecraft to the outer reaches of the solar system, or letting them tack back and forth through the asteroid belt on exploration or mining missions.