Missing satellite

[eharding]

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/sci/tech/4110912.stm

...privately funded.....launched from a Russian sub...
.goes missing.....wierd faint signals.....

Anybody else think this sounds like the screenplay
for the start of a Bond film?

[Tuna]

Damn, zose Pistonheaderfujrers are onto us! Otto, start ze countdown to phase two immediately!

[Eric Mc]

Why do the BBC keep referring to it as the "first solar powered spacecraft"? That's utter tosh. Over the last 40 odd years, thousands of solar powered spacecraft have been launched.

[Einion Yrth]

Eric Mc said:

Why do the BBC keep referring to it as the "first solar powered spacecraft"? That's utter tosh. Over the last 40 odd years, thousands of solar powered spacecraft have been launched.

Can't think of any that have attempted to use photon pressure for propulsion though; it'll just be dimwit journalists failing to understand the briefing, and then further dumbing down the message for their moron audience.

[alexkp]

Eric Mc said:

Why do the BBC keep referring to it as the "first solar powered spacecraft"? That's utter tosh. Over the last 40 odd years, thousands of solar powered spacecraft have been launched.

That's the BBC sloppy subs for you.

This is a solar sail craft, ie it uses the power of light photons striking the sail to push it along. Over a substantial period of time the craft could reach a significant fraction of light speed.

I'm surprised you didn't know all this Eric...

[Eric Mc]

Well, I was relying on what the BBC were stating in their radio bulletins. They kept reffering to "solar powered" spacecraft - which, of course, is ancient technology. What they should have said was that the spacecraft was using a proulsion system relying on solar power. A very different matter.

[pdV6]

The clue was in the title of the article... "Solar Sail probe..."

[turbobloke]

Eric Mc said:

I was relying on what the BBC were stating in their bulletins.

Oooer, dodgy tactic. The only thing you can guarantee the beeb will get right these days is the state of play inside Tony's rectum - they've been up there long enough.

[yertis]

I reckon, as a rule of thumb, whatever the BBC says is the opposite of fact. Ie, their weather forecast for the weekend is "thundery showers". This is a lie designed to reduce the number of people clogging the roads as they attempt to get away to make the most of the weather.

You can take it from me that the weekend will be sunny and dry.

[Eric Mc]

I didn't read the article, I was listening to the radio reports where they didn't mention "Solar Sail" at all.

Arthur C Clarke was writing about solar sailing in the 1960s (read his short story, "Sunjammer" ).

>> Edited by Eric Mc on Wednesday 22 June 17:34

[yertis]

And in the original edition of 2000AD comic "Tharg", the leader writer, used to relax by hang-gliding on the solar winds...

[theexcession]

Eric Mc said:

Arthur C Clarke was writing about solar sailing in the 1960s

Indeedy, as a wee yoof I remember reading how if all the money that had been spent on nuclear weopons research had actually be targetted at solar sail space craft (the designs have been around since the late 60s early 70s) then the first ship would be nearing our nearest neightbour stars right then, then being the mid/late 80s I guess.

Damn shame that it's looking like they've lost this one.

best
Ex