{"id":649118,"date":"2024-04-17T13:12:26","date_gmt":"2024-04-17T17:12:26","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/?post_type=image-article&p=649118"},"modified":"2024-04-17T13:40:23","modified_gmt":"2024-04-17T17:40:23","slug":"nasa-to-hoist-its-sail-solar-sail-mission-gets-ready-for-launch","status":"publish","type":"image-article","link":"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/image-article\/nasa-to-hoist-its-sail-solar-sail-mission-gets-ready-for-launch\/","title":{"rendered":"NASA to Hoist Its Sail: Solar Sail Mission Gets Ready for Launch"},"content":{"rendered":"<div id=\"\" class=\"hds-media hds-module wp-block-image\"><div class=\"margin-left-auto margin-right-auto nasa-block-align-inline\"><div class=\"hds-media-wrapper margin-left-auto margin-right-auto\"><figure class=\"hds-media-inner hds-cover-wrapper hds-media-ratio-fit \"><img fetchpriority=\"high\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2048\" height=\"1152\" src=\"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/04\/acs3-solarsailturntable-right.png?w=2048\" class=\"attachment-2048x2048 size-2048x2048\" alt=\"An artist's concept of NASA's Advanced Composite Solar Sail System spacecraft in orbit with the curve of the Earth visible at the bottom.\" style=\"transform: scale(1); transform-origin: 50% 50%; object-position: 50% 50%; object-fit: cover;\" block_context=\"nasa-block\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/04\/acs3-solarsailturntable-right.png 3840w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/04\/acs3-solarsailturntable-right.png?resize=300,169 300w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/04\/acs3-solarsailturntable-right.png?resize=768,432 768w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/04\/acs3-solarsailturntable-right.png?resize=1024,576 1024w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/04\/acs3-solarsailturntable-right.png?resize=1536,864 1536w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/04\/acs3-solarsailturntable-right.png?resize=2048,1152 2048w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/04\/acs3-solarsailturntable-right.png?resize=400,225 400w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/04\/acs3-solarsailturntable-right.png?resize=600,338 600w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/04\/acs3-solarsailturntable-right.png?resize=900,506 900w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/04\/acs3-solarsailturntable-right.png?resize=1200,675 1200w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/04\/acs3-solarsailturntable-right.png?resize=2000,1125 2000w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 2048px) 100vw, 2048px\" loading=\"eager\" \/><\/figure><figcaption class=\"hds-caption padding-y-2\"><div class=\"hds-caption-text p-sm margin-0\">An artist’s concept of NASA’s Advanced Composite Solar Sail System spacecraft in orbit.<\/div><div class=\"hds-credits\">NASA\/Aero Animation\/Ben Schweighart<\/div><\/figcaption><\/div><\/div><\/div>\n\n\n<p>A NASA mission testing a new way of navigating our solar system is ready to hoist its sail into space \u2013 not to catch the wind, but the propulsive power of sunlight. The <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/general\/nasa-next-generation-solar-sail-boom-technology-ready-for-launch\/\">Advanced Composite Solar Sail System\u00a0<\/a>is targeting launch on Tuesday, April 23 (Wednesday, April 24 in New Zealand) aboard a Rocket Lab Electron rocket from the company\u2019s Launch Complex 1 on the Mahia Peninsula of New Zealand.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Rocket Lab\u2019s Electron rocket will deploy the mission\u2019s CubeSat about 600 miles above Earth \u2013 more than twice the altitude of the International Space Station. To test the performance of NASA\u2019s Advanced Composite Solar Sail System, the spacecraft must be in a high enough orbit for the tiny force of sunlight on the sail \u2013 roughly equivalent to the weight of a paperclip resting on your palm \u2013 to overcome atmospheric drag and gain altitude.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>After a busy initial flight phase, which will last about two months and includes subsystems checkout, the microwave oven-sized <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/what-are-smallsats-and-cubesats\/\">CubeSat<\/a> will deploy its reflective solar sail. The weeks-long test consists of a series of pointing maneuvers to demonstrate orbit raising and lowering, using only the pressure of sunlight acting on the sail.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Stay tuned for updates as NASA\u2019s Advanced Composite Solar Sail System sets out to prove its ability to sail across space, increasing access and enabling low-cost missions to the Moon, Mars, and beyond.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><em>NASA\u2019s<\/em><em> Ames Research Center in California\u2019s Silicon Valley manages the <\/em><em>project and designed and built the onboard camera diagnostic system. NASA\u2019s Langley Research Center in Langley, Virginia, designed and built the deployable composite booms and solar sail system. NASA\u2019s Small Spacecraft Technology (SST) program office, within the agency\u2019s Space Technology Mission Directorate (STMD), funds and manages the mission. STMD\u2019s Game Changing Development program developed the deployable composite boom technology. Rocket Lab USA, Inc of Long Beach, California, is providing launch services.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n<div id=\"\" class=\"nasa-gb-align-full width-full maxw-full padding-x-3 padding-y-0 article_a hds-module hds-module-full wp-block-nasa-blocks-credits-and-details\">\n<section class=\"padding-x-0 padding-top-5 padding-bottom-2 desktop:padding-top-7 desktop:padding-bottom-9\">\n\t<div class=\"grid-row grid-container maxw-widescreen padding-0\">\n\t\t<div class=\"grid-col-12 desktop:grid-col-2 padding-right-4 margin-bottom-5 desktop:margin-bottom-0\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"padding-top-3 border-top-1px border-color-carbon-black\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"margin-bottom-2\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<h2 class=\"heading-14\">Share<\/h2>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"padding-bottom-2\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<ul class=\"social-icons social-icons-round\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<li class=\"social-icon social-icon-x\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<a href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/intent\/tweet?via=NASA&text=NASA%20to%20Hoist%20Its%20Sail%3A%20Solar%20Sail%20Mission%20Gets%20Ready%20for%20Launch&url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.nasa.gov%2Fimage-article%2Fnasa-to-hoist-its-sail-solar-sail-mission-gets-ready-for-launch%2F\" aria-label=\"Share on X.\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<svg width=\"1200\" height=\"1227\" viewBox=\"0 0 1200 1227\" fill=\"none\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\"><path d=\"M714.163 519.284L1160.89 0H1055.03L667.137 450.887L357.328 0H0L468.492 681.821L0 1226.37H105.866L515.491 750.218L842.672 1226.37H1200L714.137 519.284H714.163ZM569.165 687.828L521.697 619.934L144.011 79.6944H306.615L611.412 515.685L658.88 583.579L1055.08 1150.3H892.476L569.165 687.854V687.828Z\" fill=\"white\"\/><\/svg>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/a>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/li>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<li class=\"social-icon social-icon-facebook\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<a href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.nasa.gov%2Fimage-article%2Fnasa-to-hoist-its-sail-solar-sail-mission-gets-ready-for-launch%2F\" aria-label=\"Share on Facebook.\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<svg xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" viewBox=\"0 0 24 24\" aria-hidden=\"true\"><path d=\"M9 8h-3v4h3v12h5v-12h3.642l.358-4h-4v-1.667c0-.955.192-1.333 1.115-1.333h2.885v-5h-3.808c-3.596 0-5.192 1.583-5.192 4.615v3.385z\"\/><\/svg>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/a>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/li>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<li class=\"social-icon social-icon-linkedin\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<a href=\"https:\/\/www.linkedin.com\/shareArticle?mini=true&url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.nasa.gov%2Fimage-article%2Fnasa-to-hoist-its-sail-solar-sail-mission-gets-ready-for-launch%2F\" aria-label=\"Share on LinkedIn.\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<svg xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" viewBox=\"0 0 24 24\" aria-hidden=\"true\"><path d=\"M4.98 3.5c0 1.381-1.11 2.5-2.48 2.5s-2.48-1.119-2.48-2.5c0-1.38 1.11-2.5 2.48-2.5s2.48 1.12 2.48 2.5zm.02 4.5h-5v16h5v-16zm7.982 0h-4.968v16h4.969v-8.399c0-4.67 6.029-5.052 6.029 0v8.399h4.988v-10.131c0-7.88-8.922-7.593-11.018-3.714v-2.155z\"\/><\/svg>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/a>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/li>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<li class=\"social-icon social-icon-rss\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<a href=\"\/feed\/\" aria-label=\"Subscribe to RSS feed.\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<svg xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" viewBox=\"0 0 800 800\" aria-hidden=\"true\"><path d=\"M493 652H392c0-134-111-244-244-244V307c189 0 345 156 345 345zm71 0c0-228-188-416-416-416V132c285 0 520 235 520 520z\"\/><circle cx=\"219\" cy=\"581\" r=\"71\"\/><\/svg>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/a>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/li>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/ul>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<div class=\"grid-col-12 desktop:grid-col-5 padding-right-4 margin-bottom-5 desktop:margin-bottom-0\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"padding-top-3 border-top-1px border-color-carbon-black\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"margin-bottom-2\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<h2 class=\"heading-14\">Details<\/h2>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"grid-row margin-bottom-3\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"grid-col-4\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"subheading\">Last Updated<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"grid-col-8\">Apr 17, 2024<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t<div class=\"grid-col-12 desktop:grid-col-5 padding-right-4 margin-bottom-5 desktop:margin-bottom-0\"><div class=\"padding-top-3 border-top-1px border-color-carbon-black \"><div class=\"margin-bottom-2\"><h2 class=\"heading-14\">Related Terms<\/h2><\/div><ul class=\"article-tags\"><li class=\"article-tag\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/ames\/\">Ames Research Center<\/a><\/li><li class=\"article-tag\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/general\/\">General<\/a><\/li><li class=\"article-tag\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/langley-research-center\/\">Langley Research Center<\/a><\/li><li class=\"article-tag\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/nasa-centers-and-facilities\/\">NASA Centers & Facilities<\/a><\/li><li class=\"article-tag\"><a href=\"\/smallspacecraft\">Small Spacecraft Technology Program<\/a><\/li><li class=\"article-tag\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/space-technology-mission-directorate\/\">Space Technology Mission Directorate<\/a><\/li><\/ul><\/div><\/div>\n\t<\/div>\n<\/section>\n\t<\/div>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>A NASA mission testing a new way of navigating our solar system is ready to hoist its sail into space \u2013 not to catch the wind, but the propulsive power of sunlight. The Advanced Composite Solar Sail System\u00a0is targeting launch on Tuesday, April 23 (Wednesday, April 24 in New Zealand) aboard a Rocket Lab Electron [...]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":218,"featured_media":645158,"template":"","meta":{"nasa_hds_core_meta_l10n":"en-US","nasa_hds_core_meta_article_editor":"","nasa_hds_core_meta_article_contacts":[],"nasa_hds_core_meta_article_topic":"","nasa_hds_core_meta_linked_locations":[],"nasa_hds_core_meta_article_related_articles":[],"hds_migrate_meta_pr_release_id":"","hds_migrate_meta_pr_release_type":"","nasa_hds_core_meta_location_x":"","nasa_hds_core_meta_location_y":"","nasa_hds_core_meta_gallery_images":[]},"categories":[2854,1,2863,2665,3342,2879],"news-tags":[],"internal-terms":[],"coauthors":[10477],"parsely":{"version":"1.1.0","meta":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","headline":"NASA to Hoist Its Sail: Solar Sail Mission Gets Ready for Launch","url":"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/image-article\/nasa-to-hoist-its-sail-solar-sail-mission-gets-ready-for-launch\/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/image-article\/nasa-to-hoist-its-sail-solar-sail-mission-gets-ready-for-launch\/"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/04\/acs3-solarsailturntable-right.png?w=150&h=150&crop=1","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/04\/acs3-solarsailturntable-right.png"},"articleSection":"NASA Centers & Facilities","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Abby Tabor"}],"creator":["Abby Tabor"],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"NASA","logo":"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/themes\/nasa\/assets\/images\/nasa-logo.svg"},"keywords":["NASA Directorates","Space Technology Mission Directorate","Ames Research Center","General","Langley Research Center","NASA Centers & Facilities","Small Spacecraft Technology Program"],"dateCreated":"2024-04-17T17:12:26Z","datePublished":"2024-04-17T17:12:26Z","dateModified":"2024-04-17T17:40:23Z"},"rendered":"<meta name=\"parsely-title\" content=\"NASA to Hoist Its Sail: Solar Sail Mission Gets Ready for Launch\" \/>\n<meta name=\"parsely-link\" content=\"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/image-article\/nasa-to-hoist-its-sail-solar-sail-mission-gets-ready-for-launch\/\" \/>\n<meta name=\"parsely-type\" content=\"post\" \/>\n<meta name=\"parsely-image-url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/04\/acs3-solarsailturntable-right.png?w=150&h=150&crop=1\" \/>\n<meta name=\"parsely-pub-date\" content=\"2024-04-17T17:12:26Z\" \/>\n<meta name=\"parsely-section\" content=\"NASA Centers & Facilities\" \/>\n<meta name=\"parsely-tags\" content=\"NASA Directorates,Space Technology Mission Directorate,Ames Research Center,General,Langley Research Center,NASA Centers & Facilities,Small Spacecraft Technology Program\" \/>\n<meta name=\"parsely-author\" content=\"Abby Tabor\" \/>","tracker_url":"https:\/\/cdn.parsely.com\/keys\/nasa.gov\/p.js"},"read_time":2,"featured_image":{"id":645158,"file":"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/04\/acs3-solarsailturntable-right.png","title":"acs3-solarsailturntable-right","alt":"An artist's concept of NASA's Advanced Composite Solar Sail System spacecraft in orbit with the Sun behind and the curve of the Earth visible at the bottom.","caption":"An artist's concept of NASA's Advanced Composite Solar Sail System spacecraft in orbit with the Sun behind."},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/image-article\/649118"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/image-article"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/image-article"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/218"}],"version-history":[{"count":5,"href":"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/image-article\/649118\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":650476,"href":"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/image-article\/649118\/revisions\/650476"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/645158"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=649118"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=649118"},{"taxonomy":"news-tags","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/news-tags?post=649118"},{"taxonomy":"internal-terms","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/internal-terms?post=649118"},{"taxonomy":"author","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/coauthors?post=649118"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}