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Cosmos 1- what might be next??
The Planetary Society's Cosmos 1, if tonght'slaunch goes well, of course,
aims to do more than demonstrate thrust by solar radiation; it also aims to demonstrate steerability by a process analogous to old-time sail tacking. Further, if the mission endures , it is planned to use a radiotelescope to beam power from here on Earth to add propulsive force as well. If these three objectives are actually met over the coming weeks, it would be fair to claim that Cosmos 1 is, potentially, to interstellar travel what the Wrights' Flyer was to modern aviation - and possibly even over a comparable historical time frame On this subject, the looming discovery of Earthlike planets is likely to have an inspirational effect - there is nothing like a concrete destination, however hard to reach, to focus the dreams of explorers... June's "Astronomy Now" carries an article by Professor Webster Cash ,of Colorado University, who proposes a giant "pinhole camera" -the New Worlds Imager - to seek out and characterise such Earthlike planets. A large sunshade with a "pinhole" would screen out the glaring starlight and allow a well-placed 1 metre telescope to see and examine its planets - the whole assembly to be placed into a Lagrange orbit. The engineering problems of transfer, deployment, and control of the sunshade bear an uncanny resemblance to the techniques required for Cosmos 1. I have proposed to Professor Cash and TPS that a collaboration on a Cosmos 2- or 3 - built around this idea would be fruitful and would demonstrate dramatically a powerful application for solar sailing in a reasonable period of time. We shall see what the future brings, but I am quietly hopeful that at least the idea will be seriously considered.! Meanhile if the Cosmos 1 launch is successful tonight readers might like to look ou for James Oberg's article on the NBC News website in the next few days... Michael Martin-Smith |
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In message , Michael Martin-Smith
writes The Planetary Society's Cosmos 1, if tonght'slaunch goes well, of course, aims to do more than demonstrate thrust by solar radiation; it also aims to demonstrate steerability by a process analogous to old-time sail tacking. Further, if the mission endures , it is planned to use a radiotelescope to beam power from here on Earth to add propulsive force as well. Meanhile if the Cosmos 1 launch is successful tonight readers might like to look ou for James Oberg's article on the NBC News website in the next few days... I just posted a link to a BBC report saying it had been launched successfully, but the latest news is that it may not have separated from the booster rocket :-( http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/sci/tech/4110912.stm Let's hope something works anyway. |
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