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Unlike a sailing ship, however, a solar sail cannot "tack" into the solar wind. Tacking requires a keel submerged in a medium with much greater drag (e.g. water), which a solar sailing vessel lacks.
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* ''BattleTech'' Jumpships and Warships use jump sails to recharge their jump drives. The sails take a long time to set up and it takes a week to fully recharge the drives.
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* ''BattleTech'' Jumpships and Warships use jump sails to recharge their jump drives. The sails take a long time to set up and it takes a week to fully recharge the drives. It's worth noting that in this case the sails only act as basically giant flexible solar panels; any actual sublight ''propulsion'' worth mentioning is done via fusion rocket, it's just that the average [=JumpShip=] is essentially just a single FTL drive core with some station-keeping engines and quarters for the crew as an afterthought.
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* ''BattleTech'' Jumpships and Warships use jump sails to recharge their jump drives. The sails take a long time to set up and it takes a week to fully recharge the drives.
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->"In frigid darkness they slept, and as they slept, the cold winds of light between the stars swept them onward, slowly..."
-->-- ''AtTheMountainsOfMadness'' (Atlanta Radio Theater Company version)
-->-- ''AtTheMountainsOfMadness'' (Atlanta Radio Theater Company version)
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* [[TropeMaker The original]] StarfishAliens, the Elder Things introduced in HPLovecraft's ''AtTheMountainsOfMadness'' have fan-like wings that act as biomechanical ones allowing them to fly through space in the nude. [[BatmanCanBreatheInSpace They're apparently very good at holding their breath]].
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[[/folder]]
[[folder:VideoGames]]
* Starting in ''Videogame/SpaceEmpires IV'', you can place solar sails on your ships for bonus movement. They still work even if there isn't an actual star in the system, though.
[[folder:VideoGames]]
* Starting in ''Videogame/SpaceEmpires IV'', you can place solar sails on your ships for bonus movement. They still work even if there isn't an actual star in the system, though.
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* ''Anime/MartianSuccessorNadesico'' used this brilliantly. To lure out a hidden Jovian weapon that's been attacking them, Yurika shuts off the Nadesico and has the Aestivalises hooked up to solar sails to keep them powered up, making it akin to fishing. Once the weapon is finally revealed, everything's reactivated and the crew forces it to escape.
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* An optional technology in {{Traveller}}, but usually to slow to be worth it except for sport.
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* The Japanese IKAROS (Interplanetary Kite-craft Accelerated by Radiation Of the Sun) space probe was the first spacecraft to use a solar sail as its main method of propulsion. The craft was launched in 2010. It used the radiation pressure from the Sun to propel itself toward Venus, making history as the first solar sail-powered interplanetary spacecraft. The craft's journey to Venus was to test the sail's control system - LCD panels on the sail itself can adjust their reflectivity, giving the craft a method of attitude control. Currently JAXA, the Japanese space agency, is using the craft to further refine control methods for solar sail-powered craft.
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* The Japanese IKAROS [[TemptingFate IKAROS]] (Interplanetary Kite-craft Accelerated by Radiation Of the Sun) space probe was the first spacecraft to use a solar sail as its main method of propulsion. The craft was launched in 2010. It used the radiation pressure from the Sun to propel itself toward Venus, making history as the first solar sail-powered interplanetary spacecraft. The craft's journey to Venus was to test the sail's control system - LCD panels on the sail itself can adjust their reflectivity, giving the craft a method of attitude control. Currently JAXA, the Japanese space agency, is using the craft to further refine control methods for solar sail-powered craft.
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Replaced page image, showing the failed Nano Sail-D mission, with one showing the successful IKAROS mission.
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[[quoteright:350:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/solar_sail_7090.jpg This is NanoSail-D, a solar sail developed by NASA. Yes, solar sails actually exist.]]
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[[quoteright:350:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/solar_sail_7090.jpg This is NanoSail-D, a org/pmwiki/pub/images/IKAROS_solar_sail_3853.jpg]]
[[caption-width-right:350:This image depicts the Japanese IKAROS spacecraft, which used its solar saildeveloped by NASA. to accelerate itself on its way to Venus. Yes, solar sails actually exist.]]
exist in [[RealLife real life]].]]
[[caption-width-right:350:This image depicts the Japanese IKAROS spacecraft, which used its solar sail
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[[quoteright:350:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/solar_sail_7090.jpg]]
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[[quoteright:350:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/solar_sail_7090.jpg]]
jpg This is NanoSail-D, a solar sail developed by NASA. Yes, solar sails actually exist.]]
Real-life solar sailing has advanced by quite a lot despite the technology's infancy - Japan has already sent a solar sailing spacecraft to Venus in 2010, and other agencies and groups are planning to launch solar sails for purposes other than to test the sail itself.
[[AC:RealLife]]
* The Japanese IKAROS (Interplanetary Kite-craft Accelerated by Radiation Of the Sun) space probe was the first spacecraft to use a solar sail as its main method of propulsion. The craft was launched in 2010. It used the radiation pressure from the Sun to propel itself toward Venus, making history as the first solar sail-powered interplanetary spacecraft. The craft's journey to Venus was to test the sail's control system - LCD panels on the sail itself can adjust their reflectivity, giving the craft a method of attitude control. Currently JAXA, the Japanese space agency, is using the craft to further refine control methods for solar sail-powered craft.
* NASA's first attempt at launching a solar sail-powered craft was much less ambitious - the NanoSail-D mission was designed to test a solar sail in low Earth orbit. The first launch in 2008 failed, destroying the probe; however, a launch spare was modified and improved to become NanoSail-D2, which was launched successfully in 2010, after IKAROS was launched. Unlike IKAROS, NanoSail-D2 does not exist anymore - it reentered the atmosphere and burned up as planned.
** Although NanoSail-D2 was NASA's replacement for NanoSail-D, the original NanoSail-D mission was handed to the non-profit Planetary Society. NanoSail-D was renamed LightSail-1, and although NanoSail-D's successor had been launched successfully in 2010, LightSail-1 still awaits launch. The Planetary Society had earlier tried to launch in 2005 the first ever solar sail-powered spacecraft, Cosmos 1, but the launch vehicle failed to reach orbit.
* The Japanese IKAROS (Interplanetary Kite-craft Accelerated by Radiation Of the Sun) space probe was the first spacecraft to use a solar sail as its main method of propulsion. The craft was launched in 2010. It used the radiation pressure from the Sun to propel itself toward Venus, making history as the first solar sail-powered interplanetary spacecraft. The craft's journey to Venus was to test the sail's control system - LCD panels on the sail itself can adjust their reflectivity, giving the craft a method of attitude control. Currently JAXA, the Japanese space agency, is using the craft to further refine control methods for solar sail-powered craft.
* NASA's first attempt at launching a solar sail-powered craft was much less ambitious - the NanoSail-D mission was designed to test a solar sail in low Earth orbit. The first launch in 2008 failed, destroying the probe; however, a launch spare was modified and improved to become NanoSail-D2, which was launched successfully in 2010, after IKAROS was launched. Unlike IKAROS, NanoSail-D2 does not exist anymore - it reentered the atmosphere and burned up as planned.
** Although NanoSail-D2 was NASA's replacement for NanoSail-D, the original NanoSail-D mission was handed to the non-profit Planetary Society. NanoSail-D was renamed LightSail-1, and although NanoSail-D's successor had been launched successfully in 2010, LightSail-1 still awaits launch. The Planetary Society had earlier tried to launch in 2005 the first ever solar sail-powered spacecraft, Cosmos 1, but the launch vehicle failed to reach orbit.
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* Eldar ships in ''BattlefleetGothic'' use solar sails for propulsion
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* Eldar ships in ''BattlefleetGothic'' use solar sails for propulsionpropulsion.
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* A derelict alien-built solar sail vessel appears in ''Decency'' by RobertReed. The sail is wider than the Moon, and is punctured from impacts with stray atoms in space. When it impacts with the Earth, all of nothing happens because the sail is so thin.
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* A derelict alien-built solar sail vessel appears in ''Decency'' by RobertReed. The sail is wider than the Moon, and is punctured from impacts with stray atoms of dust in interstellar space. When it impacts with the Earth, all of nothing happens because the impact itself is harmless due to the sail is being so thin.fragile.
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* The ''Anime/MobileSuitGundamSeedDestiny'' ''Stargazer'' ONA has the "[[TitleDrop Stargazer]]" Gundam. It uses a Voiture Lumiere system as a magnetic sail. It is meant to be an unmanned probe controlled by a rudimentary AI for extrasolar exploration, though it can carry a couple of passengers/pilots if necessary.
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* ''StarTrekDeepSpaceNine'' has Captain Sisko repair a derelict Bajoran spacecraft with solar sails. He and his son decide to go on a voyage and accidentally end up in Cardassian space. Earlier in the episode shows a Cardassian and Bajoran arguing whether ancient [[AncientAstronauts Bajorans did make it to Cardassia.]]
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* ''StarTrekDeepSpaceNine'' ''Series/StarTrekDeepSpaceNine'' has Captain Sisko repair a derelict Bajoran spacecraft with solar sails. He and his son decide to go on a voyage and accidentally end up in Cardassian space. Earlier in the episode shows a Cardassian and Bajoran arguing whether ancient [[AncientAstronauts Bajorans did make it to Cardassia.]]
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* ''StarTrekDeepSpaceNice'' has Captain Sisko repair a derelict Bajoran spacecraft with solar sails. He and his son decide to go on a voyage and accidentally end up in Cardassian space. Earlier in the episode shows a Cardassian and Bajoran arguing whether ancient [[AncientAstronauts Bajorans did make it to Cardassia.]]
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* ''StarTrekDeepSpaceNice'' ''StarTrekDeepSpaceNine'' has Captain Sisko repair a derelict Bajoran spacecraft with solar sails. He and his son decide to go on a voyage and accidentally end up in Cardassian space. Earlier in the episode shows a Cardassian and Bajoran arguing whether ancient [[AncientAstronauts Bajorans did make it to Cardassia.]]
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* ''DeepSpaceNice'' has Captain Sisko repair a derelict Bajoran spacecraft with solar sails. He and his son decide to go on a voyage and accidentally end up in Cardassian space. Earlier in the episode shows a Cardassian and Bajoran arguing whether ancient [[AncientAstronauts Bajorans did make it to Cardassia.]]
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* ''DeepSpaceNice'' ''StarTrekDeepSpaceNice'' has Captain Sisko repair a derelict Bajoran spacecraft with solar sails. He and his son decide to go on a voyage and accidentally end up in Cardassian space. Earlier in the episode shows a Cardassian and Bajoran arguing whether ancient [[AncientAstronauts Bajorans did make it to Cardassia.]]
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* ''CentauriKnigts'' uses beam-assisted magsail ships as the only means of travel between Alpha Centauri and the Sol system. They travel at a significant fraction of light speed, but the trip still takes seven years.
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* ''CentauriKnigts'' ''CentauriKnights'' uses beam-assisted magsail ships as the only means of travel between Alpha Centauri and the Sol system. They travel at a significant fraction of light speed, but the trip still takes seven years.
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[[AC:LiveActionTelevision]]
* ''DeepSpaceNice'' has Captain Sisko repair a derelict Bajoran spacecraft with solar sails. He and his son decide to go on a voyage and accidentally end up in Cardassian space. Earlier in the episode shows a Cardassian and Bajoran arguing whether ancient [[AncientAstronauts Bajorans did make it to Cardassia.]]
* ''DeepSpaceNice'' has Captain Sisko repair a derelict Bajoran spacecraft with solar sails. He and his son decide to go on a voyage and accidentally end up in Cardassian space. Earlier in the episode shows a Cardassian and Bajoran arguing whether ancient [[AncientAstronauts Bajorans did make it to Cardassia.]]
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* Solar sails are used as weapons in AlastairReynolds' ''RevelationSpace'' trilogy - a paper thin solar sail does wonders at killing the starships flying at 90% the speed of light. In an interstellar chase, a sail is released behind the ship being pursued, and the ship's exhaust pushes the sail back towards the pursuer; with the speed difference between the two objects, contact would result in instantaneous destruction.
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* ''Robert L. Forward's'' ''Roche World'' series features solar sails heavily. They are used for cargo vessels in the solar system, and the interstellar ship sent to the Barnard system uses a solar sail propelled by a laser on Mercury.
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* The ''Odette II'', the yacht club's training vessel (and a former pirate ship), in ''MoretsuPirates''.
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* The ''Odette II'', the yacht club's training vessel (and a former pirate ship), in ''MoretsuPirates''.
''MouretsuPirates''.
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[[AC:Anime]]
* The ''Odette II'', the yacht club's training vessel (and a former pirate ship), in ''MoretsuPirates''.
* The ''Odette II'', the yacht club's training vessel (and a former pirate ship), in ''MoretsuPirates''.
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* The discovery of a wrecked alien solar sail vessel in ''TheMoteInGodsEye'' starts off the plot.
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* The discovery arrival of a wrecked an alien solar sail vessel in a human colonized system in ''TheMoteInGodsEye'' starts off the plot.
* ''The Wind from the Sun'' by ArthurCClarke is about an international race by solar sailing ships from the Earth to the Moon, patterned on America's Cup style yacht racing.
* ''The Wind from the Sun'' by ArthurCClarke is about an international race by solar sailing ships from the Earth to the Moon, patterned on America's Cup style yacht racing.
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* Jim Hawkings' sailboard and the RLS Legacy from ''Disney/TreasurePlanet''.
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* Count Dooku in ''[[AttackOfTheClones Star Wars: Episode II]]'' uses a ship equipped with a (tiny) solar sail to escape from a battle.
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[[AC:Film]]
* The ''Venture Star'' in ''{{Film/Avatar}}'' uses a solar sail to accelerate to its destination several lightyears away. A laser in the solar system provides thrust for the sail to get up to 70% lightspeed. However, the ship uses an antimatter rocket to slow down at its destination.
* The ''Venture Star'' in ''{{Film/Avatar}}'' uses a solar sail to accelerate to its destination several lightyears away. A laser in the solar system provides thrust for the sail to get up to 70% lightspeed. However, the ship uses an antimatter rocket to slow down at its destination.
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For interstellar voyages, the ship is usually propelled by a giant [[FrickinLaserBeams laser cannon]].
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For interstellar voyages, the ship is usually propelled by a giant [[FrickinLaserBeams laser cannon]].
cannon]] in space shooting at the sail.
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* ''TheJovianChronicles'' have solar sail and mag-sail craft as the primary bulk cargo carriers. The trade fleets operate from Mercury, because its central location next to the sun makes it a convenient stopping point. Solar sails are used in the inner systems, but only magsails are practical to reach the Jovian colonies and the asteroid belt. Past that, the solar wind is so diffuse that the Jupiter to Saturn trade relies on fusion-powered ships - fortunately there are big sources of hydrogen at both ends of that run.
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* ''TheJovianChronicles'' have solar sail and mag-sail craft as the primary bulk cargo carriers. The trade fleets operate from Mercury, because its central location next to the sun makes it a convenient stopping point. Solar sails are used in the inner systems, but only magsails are practical to reach the Jovian colonies and the asteroid belt. Past that, the solar wind is so diffuse that the Jupiter to Saturn trade relies on fusion-powered ships - fortunately there are big sources of hydrogen at both ends of that run.run.
[[AC:TabletopGames]]
* Eldar ships in ''BattlefleetGothic'' use solar sails for propulsion
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* Eldar ships in ''BattlefleetGothic'' use solar sails for propulsion
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The solution? Build a paper-thin mirrored sail a hundred kilometers across, and hang it in front of your ship - the pressure of light from stars will slowly propel your ship outwards. As you get closer to a star, you get more thrust, and as you get further away, the thrust drops off. Tacking allows you to get closer to the sun.
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The solution? Build a paper-thin mirrored sail a hundred kilometers across, and hang it in front of your ship - the pressure of light from stars will slowly propel your ship outwards. As you get closer to a star, you get more thrust, and as you get further away, the thrust drops off. Tacking allows you to get closer off according to the sun.
inverse-square law. Using the thrust to move directly away from the sun is rarely the goal, since the acceleration is low and continuous and doesn't usually equal the sun's gravity.
Like a sailing ship, which uses the contrary force vectors of the water and the wind to choose its direction, a solar sail ship uses the contrary vectors of the sun's gravity (always in) and the sun's light (straight out). A sail ship angles relative to the sun to either increase or decrease its tangential orbital velocity, and therefore the radius of its orbit. In some cases, a solar sail might be used to "hang" a ship or satellite over a star in a place orbital mechanics don't allow (see: DysonSphere), but in this case it's more of a solar parachute.
A close cousin is the magnetic sail, a system that uses a huge conductor (kilometers of superconducting wire or a cloud of ionized gas) and a magnetic field to steal kinetic energy from passing solar wind. Since the charged particles streaming from the sun are more massive than photons, this system delivers more thrust, but it requires input energy, and isn't as visually interesting since the "sail" is invisible.
Like a sailing ship, which uses the contrary force vectors of the water and the wind to choose its direction, a solar sail ship uses the contrary vectors of the sun's gravity (always in) and the sun's light (straight out). A sail ship angles relative to the sun to either increase or decrease its tangential orbital velocity, and therefore the radius of its orbit. In some cases, a solar sail might be used to "hang" a ship or satellite over a star in a place orbital mechanics don't allow (see: DysonSphere), but in this case it's more of a solar parachute.
A close cousin is the magnetic sail, a system that uses a huge conductor (kilometers of superconducting wire or a cloud of ionized gas) and a magnetic field to steal kinetic energy from passing solar wind. Since the charged particles streaming from the sun are more massive than photons, this system delivers more thrust, but it requires input energy, and isn't as visually interesting since the "sail" is invisible.
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* The discovery of a wrecked alien solar sail vessel in ''TheMoteInGodsEye'' starts off the plot.
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* The discovery of a wrecked alien solar sail vessel in ''TheMoteInGodsEye'' starts off the plot.plot.
[[AC:RolePlayingGames]]
* ''CentauriKnigts'' uses beam-assisted magsail ships as the only means of travel between Alpha Centauri and the Sol system. They travel at a significant fraction of light speed, but the trip still takes seven years.
* ''TheJovianChronicles'' have solar sail and mag-sail craft as the primary bulk cargo carriers. The trade fleets operate from Mercury, because its central location next to the sun makes it a convenient stopping point. Solar sails are used in the inner systems, but only magsails are practical to reach the Jovian colonies and the asteroid belt. Past that, the solar wind is so diffuse that the Jupiter to Saturn trade relies on fusion-powered ships - fortunately there are big sources of hydrogen at both ends of that run.
[[AC:RolePlayingGames]]
* ''CentauriKnigts'' uses beam-assisted magsail ships as the only means of travel between Alpha Centauri and the Sol system. They travel at a significant fraction of light speed, but the trip still takes seven years.
* ''TheJovianChronicles'' have solar sail and mag-sail craft as the primary bulk cargo carriers. The trade fleets operate from Mercury, because its central location next to the sun makes it a convenient stopping point. Solar sails are used in the inner systems, but only magsails are practical to reach the Jovian colonies and the asteroid belt. Past that, the solar wind is so diffuse that the Jupiter to Saturn trade relies on fusion-powered ships - fortunately there are big sources of hydrogen at both ends of that run.
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[[quoteright:350:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/solar_sail_7090.jpg]]
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So you've got your nice big spaceship, but you have one big problem - fuel. It's heavy and runs out real quick.
The solution? Build a paper-thin mirrored sail a hundred kilometers across, and hang it in front of your ship - the pressure of light from stars will slowly propel your ship outwards. As you get closer to a star, you get more thrust, and as you get further away, the thrust drops off. Tacking allows you to get closer to the sun.
For interstellar voyages, the ship is usually propelled by a giant [[FrickinLaserBeams laser cannon]].
Common in [[MohsScaleOfScienceFictionHardness hard science fiction]], or as TechnoBabble for SpaceSailing starships.
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!!Examples
[[AC:Literature]]
* A derelict alien-built solar sail vessel appears in ''Decency'' by RobertReed. The sail is wider than the Moon, and is punctured from impacts with stray atoms in space. When it impacts with the Earth, all of nothing happens because the sail is so thin.
* The discovery of a wrecked alien solar sail vessel in ''TheMoteInGodsEye'' starts off the plot.
The solution? Build a paper-thin mirrored sail a hundred kilometers across, and hang it in front of your ship - the pressure of light from stars will slowly propel your ship outwards. As you get closer to a star, you get more thrust, and as you get further away, the thrust drops off. Tacking allows you to get closer to the sun.
For interstellar voyages, the ship is usually propelled by a giant [[FrickinLaserBeams laser cannon]].
Common in [[MohsScaleOfScienceFictionHardness hard science fiction]], or as TechnoBabble for SpaceSailing starships.
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!!Examples
[[AC:Literature]]
* A derelict alien-built solar sail vessel appears in ''Decency'' by RobertReed. The sail is wider than the Moon, and is punctured from impacts with stray atoms in space. When it impacts with the Earth, all of nothing happens because the sail is so thin.
* The discovery of a wrecked alien solar sail vessel in ''TheMoteInGodsEye'' starts off the plot.
