Spaceborne hypertelescope controlled by solar sails

Details Spaceborne hypertelescope controlled by solar sails Spaceborne hypertelescope controlled by solar sails

Oct 2002

adsabs.harvard.edu/cgi-bin/nph-data_query?bibcode=2002esasp.514...51l&link_type=abstract

In: Earth-like planets and moons. Proceedings of the 36th ESLAB Symposium, 3 - 8 June 2002, ESTEC, Noordwijk, The Netherlands. E

Computer Science

Space Missions: Hypertelescopes, Interferometry

Scientific paper

Snapshot imaging of exoplanets seems feasible with multi-apertures interferometric arrays according the hypertelescope principle. A space hypertelescope can be formed from a vast constellation of ultra-light optical elements positioned by small solar sails along the large primary sphere. Our calculations show that 1 m2 of solar reflective surface is sufficient to control a mass of 1.3 kg in geo-stationary orbit. However, L2 orbits are preferable for hypertelescopes larger than 200m, in order to avoid tidal forces between elements and slow drift of the whole constellation. A 10kg-spacecraft is the heavier limit to have a reasonable solar sail size, but 1kg would be preferable. This mass constraint seems compatible with recent advances in MOEMS and ultra-light mirrors.

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