Lightsail 2 makes history by using sunlight to propel itself onto a new orbital path

It appears to be all smooth sailing for The Planetary Society's LightSail 2, with the history-making CubeSat now propelling itself through space on sunlight alone. The nonprofit announced today that after unfurling its solar sail last week, the tiny spacecraft has successfully leveraged photons from the Sun to shift its trajectory in Earth orbit, a landmark moment in the history of space exploration.

.. Continue Reading Lightsail 2 makes history by using sunlight to propel itself onto a new orbital path

Category: Space

Tags:

• CubeSat
• LightSail 2
• Planetary Society
• Solar Sail

from New Atlas (Gizmag) https://ift.tt/2GF5vAx