Tag: solar sails

Solar Sails: Fuel-Free Space Travel

Steve Hurley9 Comments

Solar sails are the only method of spacecraft propulsion in which no fuel is needed. Until recently spacecraft powered by solar sails were the stuff of science fiction. However,  following the success of the Japanese spacecraft IKAROS in 2010 the crowd-funded Light Sail 2 spacecraft in 2019 and NASA's ACS3 in 2024, spacecraft powered by… Continue reading Solar Sails: Fuel-Free Space Travel

Solar Sails

Steve Hurley9 Comments

Update 21 September 2025 As this is a changing area, I have replaced this post from 2021 with a revised and updated one. This is available at https://explainingscience.org/2025/09/21/solar-sails-fuel-free-space-travel/ I have also created a video which goes into solar sails in much more detail https://youtu.be/PcwASDdNQxk