Vulpetti / Johnson / Matloff Solar Sails

A Novel Approach to Interplanetary Travel
2. Auflage 2015
ISBN: 978-1-4939-0941-4
Verlag: Springer US
Format: PDF
Kopierschutz: 1 - PDF Watermark

E-Book, Englisch, 286 Seiten, eBook

Reihe: Space Exploration

The reality of sunlight-based sailing in space began in May 2010, and solar sail technology and science have continued to evolve rapidly through new space missions. Using the power of the Sun's light for regular travel propulsion will be the next major leap forward in our journey to other worlds. This book is the second edition of the fascinating explanation of solar sails, how they work and how they will be used in the exploration of space. Updated with 35% new material, this second edition includes three new chapters on missions operated by Japan and the US, as well as projects that are in progress. The remainder of the book describes the heritage of exploration in water-borne sailing ships and the evolution to space-vehicle propulsion; as well as nuclear, solar-electric, nuclear-electric and antimatter rocket devices. It also discusses various sail systems that may use either sunlight or solar wind, and the design, fabrication and steering challenges associated with solar sails. The first edition was met with overwhelmingly positive reviews, and deemed 'a title that needs to be on your shelf if you're seriously interested in the next step as we move beyond rocketry' (Centauri Dreams, September 2008). Written with a mixed approach, this book appeals to both the general public as well as those with a more scientifically technical background.

Giovanni Vulpetti received his Ph.D. in plasma physics in 1973. Subsequently, he specialized in astrodynamics. He wrote many tens of scientific papers about astrodynamics, advanced propulsion concepts, and interstellar flight, with particular regard to matter-antimatter annihilation propulsion. In 1979, he joined Telespazio SpA (Rome, Italy). From 1995 to 2011, he has attended the committee for Lunar Base & Mars exploration of the International Academy of Astronautics (IAA). He has been involving in solar-photon sailing since 1992. In the 1990s, he found out new types of sailcraft trajectories and published his theory mainly on Acta Astronautica, JPL workshops, and IAA symposia. In 1994, he was elected a Full Member of IAA. In spring 1997, he was a consultant at ESA/ESTEC about the solar-sail mission concept Daedalus. In 1979-2004, he contributed to 11 Italian and European space programs. In 2001, he was a  consultant at NASA/MSFC for the NASA Interstellar Probe. In the course of two decades, he accomplished some large computer codes devoted to mission analysis & trajectory optimization via rockets and/or solar-sails. In the 90s, he was a member of the IAA committee for small satellites and, consequently, he participated in the design of Telespazio TemiSat (launched in August 1993). During 2006-2007, he joined Galilean Plus (Rome, Italy) as chief scientist, and participated in the program of the Italian Space Agency for lunar explorations. To date, he has published about 120 research papers and reports. He was a COSPAR-Associate in 2002-2007. In 2009 and 2014, he served as managing guest editor of Acta Astronautica special issues. He wrote the book Fast Solar Sailing, Astrodynamics of Special Sailcraft Trajectories, Space Technology Library 30, Springer 2012. Since spring 2013, he has been a guest lecturer on the physics of in-space propulsion at the Dept. of Astronautical Engineering of University of Rome 'La Sapienza'.  Les Johnson is a physicist at NASA's Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Alabama, where he serves as the Senior Technical Advisor for the Advanced Concepts Office.  He was a Co-Investigator on the Japanese T-Rex space tether experiment, the Principal Investigator of the NASA ProSEDS mission, and the first manager of NASA's In-Space Propulsion Technology Project.  He holds three patents and was thrice awarded NASA's Exceptional Achievement Medal.  He is a TEDx speaker, was the featured 'interstellar explorer' in National Geographic's January 2013 issue, and a member of the Advisory Board for The Journal of the British Interplanetary Society.  Les and his wife, Carol, have two children and live in Madison, Alabama (a satellite community of Huntsville - the original 'Rocket City, USA!').Greg Matloff  is a leading expert in possibilities for interstellar propulsion , especially  near-Sun solar-sail trajectories that might ultimately enable interstellar travel, and is an astronomy professor with the physics department of New York City College of Technology, CUNY, a consultant with NASA Marshall Space Flight Center, a Hayden Associate of the American Museum of Natural History and a Member of the International Academy of Astronautics. He co-authored with Les Johnson of NASA and C Bangs Paradise Regained (2009), Living Off the Land in Space (2007) and has authored Deep-Space Probes (edition 1: 2000 and edition 2: 2005).  As well as authoring More Telescope Power (2002), Telescope Power (1993), The Urban Astronomer (1991), he co-authored with Eugene Mallove The Starflight Handbook. (1989). His papers on interstellar travel, the search for extraterrestrial artifacts, and methods of protecting Earth from asteroid impacts have been published in JBIS, Acta Astronautica, Spaceflight, ,Space Technology,  Journal of Astronautical Sciences, and Mercury. His popular articles have appeared in many publications, including Analog and IEEE Spectrum. In 1998, he won a $5000 prize in the international essay contest on ETI sponsored by the National Institute for Discovery Science. . He served on a November 2007 panel organized by Seed magazine to brief Congressional staff on the possibilities of a sustainable, meaningful space program. Professor Matloff is a Fellow of the British Interplanetary Society. He has chaired many technical sessions and is listed in numerous volumes of Who's Who. In 2008, he was honored  as Scholar on Campus at New York City College of Technology.  In addition to his interstellar-travel research, he has contributed to SETI (the Search for Extraterrestrial Intelligence), modeling studies of human effects on Earth's atmosphere, interplanetary exploration concept analysis, alternative energy, in-space navigation, and the search for extrasolar planets. 

Zielgruppe

Popular/general

Autoren/Hrsg.

Vulpetti, Giovanni

Johnson, Les

Matloff, Gregory L.

Inhaltsverzeichnis

1;Contents;6
2;Dedication;8
3;Foreword;10
4;Foreword to the First Edition;12
5;Preface to the First Edition;14
6;Preface to the Second Edition;18
7;Acknowledgments;22
8;About the Authors;24
9;Part I: Space Engines: Past and Present;26
9.1;1: An Historical Introduction to Space Propulsion;27
9.1.1;A Bronze Age Astronaut;28
9.1.2; Early Science Fiction; The First Rocket Scientist;28
9.1.3; Perhaps He Wanted to Meet the “Man in the Moon”;29
9.1.4; The Dawn of the Space Age;30
9.1.5; Further Reading;36
9.2;2: The Rocket: How It Works in Space;37
9.2.1;Newtonian Mechanics and Rocket Fundamentals;37
9.2.2;Inertia—Objects Resist Changes in Motion;37
9.2.3;Force and a Most Influential Equation;38
9.2.4;Actions and Reactions;38
9.2.5;Linear Momentum: A Conserved Quantity;39
9.2.6;The Rocket Equation;40
9.2.7;Staged Rockets;41
9.2.8;Chemical rockets and Their Alternatives;43
9.2.9;Further Reading;45
9.3;3: Rocket Problems and Limitations;46
9.3.1;Limits of the Chemical Rocket;46
9.3.2; Nuclear and Solar Thermal Rockets: An Improvement with Issues;47
9.3.3; Solar and Nuclear Electric Rockets—The Ion Drive;49
9.3.4; Nuclear Direct: The Nonthermal Nuclear Rocket Concept;51
9.3.5; Nuclear Pulse: The Ultimate in Rocket Design;52
9.3.6; The Long-Term Icarus Design Concept;54
9.3.7; The Antimatter Propulsion Concept;55
9.3.8; Further Reading;56
9.4;4: Non-Rocket In-Space Propulsion;58
9.4.1;Aeroassisted Reentry, Deceleration, and Orbit Change;58
9.4.2; Planetary Gravity Assists: The First Extrasolar Propulsion Technique;60
9.4.3; Electrodynamic Tethers: Pushing Against the Earth’s Magnetic Field;61
9.4.4; Momentum Exchange Tethers: King David’s Slingshot to Space;63
9.4.5; MagSails and Plasma Sails: Riding the Solar Wind;63
9.4.6; Interstellar Ramjets and Their Derivatives;65
9.4.7; Further Reading;67
9.5;5: The Solar Sail Option: From the Oceans to Space;68
9.5.1;A Bit of Human History;68
9.5.2; Sea Sailing;70
9.5.2.1;Just a Few Words About Wind;70
9.5.2.2; How Can a Sailboat Navigate?;71
9.5.3; Early History of Space Sailing;74
9.5.3.1;The Amazing Nature of Light;75
9.5.3.2; Benefits for Spaceflight;78
9.5.4; Further Reading;80
10;Part II: Space Missions by Sail;82
10.1;6: Principles of Space Sailing;83
10.1.1;What Is a Solar Sail?;83
10.1.2;Momentum Transfer;84
10.1.3;How Can the Solar Wind Be Used for Sailing?;85
10.1.4;Further Reading;87
10.2;7: What Is a Space Sailcraft?;89
10.2.1;Sail Deployment;90
10.2.2; Sail Control;91
10.2.3; Communication System;91
10.2.4; Sailcraft Temperature;92
10.2.5; Payload;92
10.2.6; The Micro-Sailcraft Concept;93
10.2.7; Conclusion;94
10.3;8: Sails Versus Rockets;95
10.3.1;Rockets and Bombs;95
10.3.2; Toxic Fumes, Flammable Liquids and All that Stuff;99
10.3.3; Complicated Plumbing, Big Tanks and Turbo-Machinery;100
10.3.4; Running Out of Gas (Not!);102
10.3.5;References;103
10.4;9: Exploring and Developing Space by Sailcraft;104
10.4.1;Near-Term (2015–2025) Sailcraft Mission Options;104
10.4.1.1;Solar Storm Monitoring;104
10.4.1.2; Pole Sitters;109
10.4.1.3; Near Earth Asteroid Reconnaissance;110
10.4.1.4; Magnetospheric Constellations;110
10.4.1.5; Target-Variable Magnetospheric Missions;110
10.4.1.6; Solar Polar Imager;111
10.4.1.7; L-1 Diamond;112
10.4.2; Mid-Term (2025–2040) Sailcraft Mission Options;112
10.4.2.1;Comet Rendezvous;112
10.4.2.2; Particle Acceleration Solar Orbiter;112
10.4.2.3; Mars Sample Return;113
10.4.2.4; Aerocapture Experiments;113
10.4.2.5; Extrasolar Probes;114
10.4.3; Far-Term (2040+) Sailcraft Mission Options;115
10.4.3.1;Human Exploration Sailships;115
10.4.3.2; Rearranging the Solar System;116
10.4.3.3; Space Mining;116
10.4.3.4; Oort Cloud Explorers;117
10.4.3.5; The Ultimate Future: Sailships to the Stars!;117
10.4.3.6; Relativistic Starflight;118
10.4.3.7; The Nuclear Option;119
10.4.3.8; Solar Sail Starships;120
10.4.4; Further Reading;121
10.4.5;References;121
10.5;10: Riding a Beam of Light;123
10.5.1;Laser Sailing;124
10.5.2; Microwave Sailing;126
10.5.3; Particle-Beam Sail Propulsion;128
10.5.4; Further Reading;129
11;Part III: Construction of Sailcraft;130
11.1;11: Designing a Solar Sail;131
11.1.1;Types of Solar Sails;131
11.1.1.1;Sail Physics Requires Some Design Commonality;131
11.1.1.2; Three-Axis Stabilized Solar Sails;131
11.1.1.3; Spin-Stabilized “Solid” Solar Sails;134
11.1.1.4; Spin-Stabilized “Heliogyro” Solar Sails;136
11.1.2; How to Maneuver a Sailcraft;137
11.1.2.1;What Is Spacecraft Attitude?;137
11.1.2.2; Classifying Attitude Analysis Items;138
11.1.2.3; Sail Attitude Control Methods;140
11.1.2.3.1;Method 1: Relative Displacement between Barycenter and Center of Pressure;140
11.1.2.3.2; Method 2: Using Pairs of a Segmented Sail;141
11.1.2.3.3; Method 3: Utilizing Small Sails Located at the Boom Ends;141
11.1.2.3.4; Method 4: Very Small Rockets;142
11.1.2.3.5; Method 5: Changing Sail Reflectance;142
11.1.3; Conclusion;143
11.1.4;References;144
11.2;12: Building a Sailcraft;145
11.2.1;Using Today’s Technologies;145
11.2.2; Russia’s Space Mirrors;146
11.2.3; Germany Advances Sail Technology in the 1990s;146
11.2.4; Cosmos and LightSail: The Planetary Society Put Its Money on the Table;147
11.2.5; NASA Gets Serious About Solar Sails;148
11.2.6; Japan Sails in Space;150
11.2.7; The UK Enters the Race;151
11.2.8; Current Solar Sail Technology: Where We Stand Today;151
11.2.9; Using Emerging Technologies;153
11.2.10; Using Ultimate Technologies;158
11.2.11; Further Reading;159
11.2.12;References;159
11.3;13: Progress to Date;160
11.3.1;Pioneering Designs;160
11.3.2; The Role of Space Agencies;162
11.3.3; Private Initiatives;167
11.3.4; Further Reading;169
11.4;14: Future Plans;171
11.4.1;The Next 25 Years;171
11.4.1.1;United States;171
11.4.1.2; Japan;173
11.4.1.3; Russia;173
11.4.1.4; Europe;173
11.4.1.5; Why Does It Take So Long To Fly A New Propulsion System?;175
11.4.1.5.1;Reason 1: Timescale;175
11.4.1.5.2; Reason 2: Science;177
11.4.1.5.3; Reason 3: Risk;177
11.4.2; The Next 50 Years;177
11.4.3; The Next 100 Years;178
11.4.4;References;178
12;Part IV: Breakthroughs in Space;179
12.1;15: The JAXA IKAROS Mission as a Technological Breakthrough;180
12.1.1;Launch from Earth;180
12.1.2; En-route to Venus;182
12.1.3; The Extended Mission;184
12.1.4; Appendix: Some Data about the IKAROS Sail;184
12.1.5; Further Reading;185
12.2;16: The NanoSAIL-D2 NASA Mission;187
12.2.1;The Groundwork;187
12.2.2; The Flight;189
12.2.3; Some Results from the NanoSail-D2 Mission;190
12.2.4; Application of NanoSail-D2 Technology;192
12.2.5;References;192
12.3;17: New Projects in Progress;193
12.3.1;Mission to Jupiter and the Trojan Asteroids;193
12.3.2; Asteroid Diversion;197
12.3.3; The Gravity Tractor;197
12.3.4; Kinetic NEO Deflection Using the Solar Sail;198
12.3.5; Some Other Solar-Sail Related Approaches to NEO Diversion;199
12.3.6; Further Reading;200
13;Part V: Space Sailing: Some Technical Aspects;201
13.1;18: Space Sources of Light;202
13.1.1;Further Reading;215
13.1.2;References;216
13.2;19: Modeling Thrust from Electromagnetic Radiation Pressure;217
13.2.1;Main Symbols and Acronyms;217
13.2.2; Frames of Reference;218
13.2.3; Phenomena Transferring Momentum;220
13.2.4; Thrust Acceleration Features;224
13.2.5; Behavior of the Thrust Acceleration Components;227
13.2.5.1;Thrust Acceleration in the Heliocentric Inertial Frame;229
13.2.6; Further Reading;232
13.2.7;References;233
13.3;20: Sailcraft Trajectories;234
13.3.1;Motion Equations;234
13.3.2; General Keplerian Orbits;236
13.3.3; Interplanetary Transfers;240
13.3.4; Non-Keplerian Orbits;245
13.3.5; Many-Body Orbits;247
13.3.6; Fast and Very Fast Sailing;249
13.3.7; Further Reading;256
13.3.8;References;256
13.4;21: Sails in the Space Environment;257
13.4.1;Manufacturing: The Environment of Damage and Risk;257
13.4.2; Launch: Shake, Rattle, Roll, and Outgas;258
13.4.3; Low Earth Orbit: “No-Man’s-Land” for Solar Sails;260
13.4.4; The Inner Solar System: At Home for Solar Sails (But Not a Safe Harbor);261
13.4.5; Close Solar Approaches: Increased Thrust—But at What Cost?;262
13.4.6; State-of-the-Art Materials;267
13.4.7; Next-Generation Materials Needs;268
13.4.8; Summary;269
13.4.9; Further Reading;269
14;Glossary;270
15;Index;276

Acknowledgements.- Preface.- Foreword. Part I: Space Engines: Past and Present.- A Historical Introduction to Space Propulsion.- The Rocket: How It Works in Space.- Rocket Problems and Limitations- Non-Rocket-In-Space Propulsion.- The Solar-Sail Reality: from the Oceans to Space.- Part II Space Mission by Sail.- Principles of Space Sailing.- What is a Space Sailcraft?- Sails vs. Rockets.- Exploring and Developing Space by Sailcraft.- Riding a Beam of Light.- Part III Construction of Sailcraft.- Designing a Solar Sail.- Building a Sailcraft.- Progress to Date.- Future Plans.- Part IV Breakthroughs in Space.- The IKAROS/JAXA Mission.- The NanoSail-D2/NASA Mission.- New Projects in Progress.- Part V Space Sailing: Some Technical Aspects.- Space Sources of Light.- Modeling Thrust via Electromagnetic Radiation Pressure and Diffraction- Sailcraft Trajectories.- Sails in Space Environment.

Über Autor(innen)

Giovanni Vulpetti received his Ph.D. in plasma physics in 1973. Subsequently, he specialized in astrodynamics. He wrote many tens of scientific papers about astrodynamics, advanced propulsion concepts, and interstellar flight, with particular regard to matter-antimatter annihilation propulsion. In 1979, he joined Telespazio SpA (Rome, Italy). From 1995 to 2011, he has attended the committee for Lunar Base & Mars exploration of the International Academy of Astronautics (IAA). He has been involving in solar-photon sailing since 1992. In the 1990s, he found out new types of sailcraft trajectories and published his theory mainly on Acta Astronautica, JPL workshops, and IAA symposia. In 1994, he was elected a Full Member of IAA. In spring 1997, he was a consultant at ESA/ESTEC about the solar-sail mission concept Daedalus. In 1979-2004, he contributed to 11 Italian and European space programs. In 2001, he was a  consultant at NASA/MSFC for the NASA Interstellar Probe. In the course of two decades, he accomplished some large computer codes devoted to mission analysis & trajectory optimization via rockets and/or solar-sails. In the 90s, he was a member of the IAA committee for small satellites and, consequently, he participated in the design of Telespazio TemiSat (launched in August 1993). During 2006-2007, he joined Galilean Plus (Rome, Italy) as chief scientist, and participated in the program of the Italian Space Agency for lunar explorations. To date, he has published about 120 research papers and reports. He was a COSPAR-Associate in 2002-2007. In 2009 and 2014, he served as managing guest editor of Acta Astronautica special issues. He wrote the book Fast Solar Sailing, Astrodynamics of Special Sailcraft Trajectories, Space Technology Library 30, Springer 2012. Since spring 2013, he has been a guest lecturer on the physics of in-space propulsion at the Dept. of Astronautical Engineering of University of Rome ‘La Sapienza’.  Les Johnson is a physicist at NASA's Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Alabama, where he serves as the Senior Technical Advisor for the Advanced Concepts Office. He was a Co-Investigator on the Japanese T-Rex space tether experiment, the Principal Investigator of the NASA ProSEDS mission, and the first manager of NASA's In-Space Propulsion Technology Project. He holds three patents and was thrice awarded NASA's Exceptional Achievement Medal. He is a TEDx speaker, was the featured "interstellar explorer" in National Geographic's January 2013 issue, and a member of the Advisory Board for The Journal of the British Interplanetary Society. Les and his wife, Carol, have two children and live in Madison, Alabama (a satellite community of Huntsville - the original "Rocket City, USA!").Greg Matloff is a leading expert in possibilities for interstellar propulsion , especially near-Sun solar-sail trajectories that might ultimately enable interstellar travel, and is an astronomy professor with the physics department of New York City College of Technology, CUNY, a consultant with NASA Marshall Space Flight Center, a Hayden Associate of the American Museum of Natural History and a Member of the International Academy of Astronautics. He co-authored with Les Johnson of NASA and C Bangs Paradise Regained (2009), Living Off the Land in Space (2007) and has authored Deep-Space Probes (edition 1: 2000 and edition 2: 2005). As well as authoring More Telescope Power (2002), Telescope Power (1993), The Urban Astronomer (1991), he co-authored with Eugene Mallove The Starflight Handbook. (1989). His papers on interstellar travel, the search for extraterrestrial artifacts, and methods of protecting Earth from asteroid impacts have been published in JBIS, Acta Astronautica, Spaceflight, ,Space Technology, Journal of Astronautical Sciences, and Mercury. His popular articles have appeared in many publications, including Analog and IEEE Spectrum. In 1998, he won a $5000 prize in the international essay contest on ETI sponsored by the National Institute for Discovery Science. . He served on a November 2007 panel organized by Seed magazine to brief Congressional staff on the possibilities of a sustainable, meaningful space program. Professor Matloff is a Fellow of the British Interplanetary Society. He has chaired many technical sessions and is listed in numerous volumes of Who’s Who. In 2008, he was honored as Scholar on Campus at New York City College of Technology.  In addition to his interstellar-travel research, he has contributed to SETI (the Search for Extraterrestrial Intelligence), modeling studies of human effects on Earth’s atmosphere, interplanetary exploration concept analysis, alternative energy, in-space navigation, and the search for extrasolar planets.