The Advanced Composite Solar Sail System (ACS3) technology demonstrator launched on April 23, 2024.
It uses #composite materials in its novel, lightweight booms that deploy from a #CubeSat. Data obtained from ACS3 will guide the design of future larger-scale composite solar sail systems that could be used for space weather early warning satellites, near-Earth #asteroid reconnaissance missions, or communications relays.
Latest article by Christian Bianchi in collaboration with friends at
U. of Pisa:
"Preliminary design of a space debris removal mission in LEO using a solar sail"
We show how a solar sail could be used as a shuttle to collect and deorbit debris objects of moderate size, multiple times. The sail exploits the combined effect of solar radiation pressure and atmospheric forces.