Plasma sail spacecraft could soar like an albatross to Alpha Centauri
A spacecraft equipped with a “sail” made from plasma could construct up velocity by continuously crossing the boundary at the edge of the solar method, just as an albatross soars by taking edge of regions of diverse wind speeds
Space
2 December 2022
The termination shock, at the centre of this diagram, is in which the photo voltaic wind 1st reaches interstellar place
SCIENCE Image LIBRARY
A spacecraft that crosses the boundary of plasma at the edge of our photo voltaic system could be boosted to the severe speeds vital for interstellar travel employing a comparable basic principle to how an albatross maintains flight on Earth.
The plan is an extension of a photo voltaic sail, which uses a significant, reflective surface area to “ride” the stream of particles getting emitted by the sunshine, steadily raising in velocity above time as particles …
