@dw.science: Solar sailing could be the future of space travel! NASA’s ACS3 spacecraft isn’t using rocket fuel to glide through space – it’s powered by sunlight! Rather than solar panels, these sails are powered by the little push that photons from the light give as they bounce off. They’re made from a super-thin material called mylar. The lightweight design reduces costs and allows for long-duration missions. With this technology, we might even voyage to another star someday. The concept of solar sails has been around for centuries, from the early theories of Johannes Kepler to Carl Sagan’s vision in the 1970s. Japan's IKAROS and The Planetary Society’s LightSail paved the way, and now NASA is taking it further. The sails hold potential for interstellar travel, or at the very least to the edge of our solar system. Want to catch a glimpse of the ACS3 spacecraft in the night sky? You can track it using NASA’s app. If you spot it, let us know in the comments. Author: Sushmitha Ramakrishnan Source: NASA, The Planetary Society #space #astronomy #NASA #spacetravel #cosmos #carlsagan #solarsail #SpotTheSail #voyager #CarlSagan #STEMTok #sciencetok #science #LearnOnTikTok #dwscience #dwspace
