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'The Science Guy' Talks About His Space Sail


'The Science Guy' Talks About His Space Sail In 1976, renowned astrophysicist Carl Sagan brought a weird, reflective prop with him to the Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson. The toy was a mockup of a solar sail—a revolutionary idea for space travel propulsion that eschews fuel. “[It] travels on the radiation and particles that come out of the Sun—the wind from the Sun,” Sagan explained to Carson, comparing the technology to how an ordinary sail boat moves through the ocean. Fast forward to today, and Sagan’s vision for fuel-less, solar-powered space propulsion is turning into a reality. The Planetary Society, headed by Bill Nye “The Science Guy,” is launching its very own version of the solar sail concept, the LightSail, atop an Atlas V rocket at Cape Canaveral.    More



(Source: Popular Science - May 21)

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