--- title: "NASA Solar Sail Spacecraft Damaged, Spinning Through Space" description: "NASA's Advanced Composite Solar Sail System (ACS3) is still spinning through space uncontrollably. One of its boom arms has a bend as well." date: "2024-10-30" modified: "2024-10-30" authors: - name: "Victor Tangermann" job_title: "Senior Editor" link: "https://futurism.com/authors/victor" url: "https://futurism.com/the-byte/nasa-solar-sail-spacecraft-damaged-spinning" categories: - "Energy" - "NASA" - "Renewable Energy" - "Science & Energy" - "Solar Power" - "Space" tags: - "NASA" - "solar sail" - "the digest" --- # NASA Solar Sail Spacecraft Damaged, Spinning Through Space ![NASA's Advanced Composite Solar Sail System (ACS3) is still spinning through space uncontrollably. One of its boom arms has a bend as well.]() *\Image: NASA\* ## Rough and Tumble NASA's [Advanced Composite Solar Sail System]() (ACS3), a dazzling spacecraft designed to make use of the tiny amounts of radiation pressure exerted by sunlight for propulsion, is still spinning through space uncontrollably. In an [update last week](), the space agency admitted that the solar sail is "still slowly tumbling" in orbit because its "attitude control system is not yet reengaged." After launching the unusual payload on April 23, ACS3 [unfurled its 860-square-foot sail]() in early September. Since then, NASA has taken things slow, allowing for the significantly changing dynamics of the unfurling spacecraft to take effect before turning on its attitude control system, which points it in the right direction. Unfortunately, the space agency is dealing with a "slight bend in one of the four booms" stretching out the sail. "This likely occurred as the booms and sail were pulled taut to the spacecraft during deployment," NASA wrote in its update. "Analysis indicates that the bend may have partially straightened over the weeks since boom deployment, while the spacecraft was slowly tumbling." ## Boom Stick It's especially unfortunate given ACS3's primary objective is to test out new "composite boom technology" for even larger solar sails in the future. However, NASA says that "data collected from this flight test has already proven highly valuable, and the demonstration will continue producing critical information to enable future solar sail missions." The bend isn't expected to pose any major issues to the ongoing mission, NASA said. Teams at the agency are now waiting for ACS3 to keep spinning until it's facing directly towards the sunlight for optimal power generation. At that point, its attitude control system will reactivate to allow it to right itself. It's [far from the first solar sail]() to be deployed, but ACS3 could lay important groundwork for future solar sails like it — a clever, extremely low-cost form of propulsion that could enable an entirely new generation of spacecraft. **More on the solar sail:** *[NASA's Experimental Solar Sail Is Tumbling in Orbit]()* ## Author I've been at Futurism since 2017, where my role has evolved to encompass design, writing, and increasingly editing. I've always been fascinated by space exploration and advanced transportation, which I've leaned into by interviewing luminaries in those fields while closely following the dimensions of policy and regulation that allow next-generation projects to succeed -- or, sometimes, to fail. I'm also keenly interested in the effects of generative AI on society, policies, and democratic institutions, as well as clean energy, physics and biology, and the vagaries of tech leadership. My work for Futurism has been cited by publications including Ars Technica, Gizmodo, PC Magazine, Jalopnik, Fox News, and the New York Post. I spent my childhood living in locations including Manila, the Philippines, and Geneva, Switzerland, attended McGill University, and now live in Toronto, Canada. Before Futurism I worked at AskMen and a small photography studio. In my free time, I'm an avid gardener, foodie, and craft beer lover, as well as a maker of artisanal hot pepper sauces. I have a magnificent dog named Freida. ### Author social links [Bluesky]()