![]() Our sun has a total power Es of 3.9x10^26 W. We have then p = 1.32 10^-27 kg.m.s-1 and the energy Ep = hν of a photon will be 3.957 10^-19 J To simplify the calculations, assume that the sun does not emit a whole rainbow of colors, but only the yellow-green color (λ = 500 nm). Where h is Planck's constant (6.6 10^-34 Joules). The impulse p of a photon of frequency ν, thus of energy hν, thus of wavelength λ = c/ν on the sail is p = hν/c = h/λ Just a little calculations on the acceleration for a solar Sail: Try this yourself using steps of any size, though I recommend writing a small computer program to automate the task like I did. It is simple now to calculate a rough estimate of the sail's final velocity using these 'steps of thrust'. Now I had a dataset of thrust values from Earth till Neptune, in steps of 1 AU. ![]() The method I used was to simply solve the equation multiple times for differing values of distance from the Sun in AU, according to a hypothetical flight plan. ![]() So to get the solution you want, you can integrate the equation using calculus and magic, but if you're like me, you want a simpler method for research purposes. ![]() However as earlier mentioned, thrust in solar sails is not temporary, it is a steady process. The equation you've provided calculates force at a given moment in the craft's flight. Of course it depends on angle, and the occasional eclipse if passing through a body's shadow will cause a dip. Steady solar flux on the sail produces a steady force, albeit reducing with distance to the Sun. Solar sails are unique when compared to other propulsion methods because in a solar sail, the acceleration is continuously available throughout the flight. ![]()
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