Solar Sailing (Springer Praxis Books / Astronomy and Planetary Sciences) [Paperback]

Colin R. McInnes (Author)

Book Description

ISBN-10: 185233102X | ISBN-13: 978-1852331023 | Publication Date: May 28, 1999 | Edition: 1

Solar sailing offers the possibility of low-cost long-distance missions, impossible for any other type of conventional spacecraft. The book provides a detailed account of solar sailing, at a high technical level but in a way accessible to the scientifically informed layman. Solar sail orbital dynamics and solar radiation pressure form the foundations of the book, but the engineering design of solar sails is also considered, along with potential mission applications. This book introduces the subject and at the same time provides a technical reference source.

Product Details

• Paperback: 296 pages
• Publisher: Springer; 1 edition (May 28, 1999)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 185233102X
• ISBN-13: 978-1852331023
• Product Dimensions: 9.7 x 6.8 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.8 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #5,380,583 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

17 of 18 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The most comprehensive source on solar sailing, November 10, 1999

By 

Benjamin L. Diedrich (Silver Spring, Maryland, USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Solar Sailing (Springer Praxis Books / Astronomy and Planetary Sciences) (Paperback)

"Solar Sailing" is the most comprehensive book yet written on solar sailing. This is suggested by the introduction, which gives the history of solar sailing, discusses the basic principles, summarizes the topics of the rest of the book, and concludes with a rich list of references to further material. What follows are six more chapters that delve into the topics of solar sailing: solar radiation pressure, design, orbital mechanics, non-Keplerian orbits, mission applications, and laser sailing. In addition to being an excellent resource on both basic and advanced solar sailing principles, "Solar Sailing" also provides the very latest information on mission applications which are under study right now in chapter 6, like the Geostorm mission for early detection of geomagnetic storms and the sun-synchronous Mercury orbiter. Chapter 3, in addition to discussing solar sail design, describes several historical solar sail designs, mostly from the race to the moon and Mars proposed for the early 1990's.

Each chapter begins with an introduction to the concepts, then discusses them in increasing detail, starting with basic concepts that a beginner or enthusiast can use, and ending with topics that are useful for a detailed engineering analysis. A Equations are provided at every level, so a reader can immediately begin using the material in the book to study solar sailing for themselves. For example, the chapter on radiation pressure begins with a the history of the topic and quantum and electromagnetic explanations for light pressure. Following this are increasingly detailed discussions of the force acting on a solar sail, ranging from perfectly flat and reflective sails and treating the sun as a point, to radiative transfer methods for treating the sun as a disk-shaped light source and curved sails with imperfect reflection.

I highly recommend this book for anyone interested in solar sailing, from beginners to professionals. Although some of the material in this book can be found in other sources, like technical journals, this book organizes the information in a form that is immediately useful, and covers the basics required to understand the more advanced topics.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Ready about!, December 27, 2004

By 

Jill Malter ([e-mail]) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Solar Sailing: Technology, Dynamics and Mission Applications (Springer Praxis Books / Astronomy and Planetary Sciences) (Paperback)

This is an excellent book on solar sailing. What I like best about it is that it gives not only useful results for several mission application case studies but the means to derive those results for oneself.

The book begins with a history of the topic and some possible applications, as well as some brief comparisons with other forms of propulsion and a couple of important performance metrics (in particular, the characteristic acceleration). Next is a discussion of radiation pressure, where we start by being carefully walked through the calculation of the force on a perfectly reflecting sail. That gets us in the right mood to examine radiative transfer methods, effects of a non-zero area for the solar disc, and solar sail force models for realistic sails.

After that, McInnes discusses solar sail design parameters, sail materials, sail structures, and sail configurations. That includes an excellent introduction to packing, deployment, and control issues.

Now we get to my favorite chapters: solar sail orbital dynamics, for both Keplerian and non-Keplerian orbits (both Sun-centered and planet-centered). The whole point of using solar sails is to make good use of a small but constant thrust, so a main application is to "levitate" the orbit above the Sun or above a planet. McInnes examines the characteristics, controllabilty, and stability of some of these orbits. And he then obtains results for orbits near Lagrange points (both planetary and lunar).

Few books in any field do as good a job at getting the reader up to speed on a topic. A person who has completed this book ought to be able to delve into any of the most recent literature in the field without fear.

5.0 out of 5 stars Solar Sailing Awesomeness., May 27, 2009

By 

Kelson Philo "- kp" (lawrence, ks United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Solar Sailing: Technology, Dynamics and Mission Applications (Springer Praxis Books / Astronomy and Planetary Sciences) (Paperback)

Marvelous. This book has *everything* you need to put on paper not only a solar sail design, but mission design fro the sail as well. Highly recommended for anyone interested. Well though out, well written.