Science opportunities with solar sailing smallsats

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Identified Weaknesses

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Paper Summary

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Solar Sails: Your Rocket to the Stars is Still in the Design Phase (But Oh, The Places You'll Go!)

This paper proposes the "Sundiver" concept, advocating for small, solar-sailing spacecraft to enable fast, low-cost exploration of the deep solar system, including missions to outer planets, asteroids, and interstellar space. It meticulously outlines numerous science opportunities across heliophysics, planetary science, and astrophysics. The authors emphasize that while some missions are feasible with current technology, the full realization of the "Sundiver" paradigm requires significant advancements in sail materials, power systems, and autonomous in-flight assembly.

Possible Conflicts of Interest

The paper acknowledges funding from the NASA Innovative Advanced Concepts (NIAC) Program and lists affiliations with various academic institutions (e.g., Jet Propulsion Laboratory, California Institute of Technology, University of Luxembourg, UCLA) and non-profits (The Planetary Society, Breakthrough Initiatives). The Aerospace Corporation also provided an independent cost estimate. These are standard collaborations and funding sources for academic research; no critical conflicts of interest or commercial product endorsements over others were identified.

Identified Weaknesses

Conceptual Nature and Reliance on Future Technology

The paper primarily outlines opportunities and concepts for future missions rather than presenting completed experimental research. Many ambitious aspects, especially for later phases (II and III), depend on technologies currently at lower Technology Readiness Levels (TRLs) and requiring significant further development in areas like advanced sail materials, deep-space power units, and autonomous in-flight assembly.

External Dependencies (Funding and Policy)

The successful implementation of the "Sundiver" paradigm hinges on increased budget allocation, specific policy recommendations to establish strong scientific and commercial focus, and effective public-private partnerships. These are external factors beyond the paper's control and are not guaranteed, posing a significant challenge to the proposed roadmap.

Payload Constraints

While solar sailing smallsats offer speed and cost advantages, they inherently have limited payload mass capacity. This necessitates highly miniaturized and low-power instruments, which could potentially constrain the breadth or depth of scientific data collection compared to larger, more expensive flagship missions.

Complexity of In-flight Assembly

A key enabler for higher payload capacities and orbital capture for distant targets is autonomous in-flight aggregation of microsats into larger spacecraft. This is a complex, largely unexplored concept requiring substantial maturation beyond current docking technologies, adding a high level of technical risk to advanced missions.

Rating Explanation

This paper is a strong, visionary review that thoroughly outlines an exciting new paradigm for space exploration using solar sailing smallsats. It meticulously details numerous science opportunities, discusses current technological readiness, and transparently identifies the necessary future developments and challenges. While conceptual, it provides a comprehensive and well-reasoned roadmap, making it a valuable contribution to strategic planning in space science.

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