Fraser Cain
3 HN recommenders · recommended in 3 months, 2022–2024
1:03:49 · 33K views · Apr 19, 2022
Fraser Cain interviews JPL physicist Slava Turyshev about using the Sun's gravity as a lens to image distant exoplanets. They cover how the lens works, how a spacecraft would align with it, and mission design.
HN points to it as the best accessible explanation of the solar gravitational lens mission plan.
4 comments from Hacker News
The most complete plan for this was proposed by JPL's Slava Turyshev and team. It has been selected for Phase III of NASA Innovative Advanced Concepts. [0] > In 2020, Turyshev presented his idea of Direct Multi-pixel Imaging and Spectroscopy of an Exoplanet with a Solar Gravitational Lens Mission. The lens could reconstruct the exoplanet image with ~25 km-scale surface resolution in 6 months of integration time, enough to see surface features and signs of habitability. His proposal was selected for the Phase III of the NASA Innovative Advanced Concepts. Turyshev proposes to use realistic-sized solar sails (~16 vanes of 10^3 m^2) to achieve the needed high velocity at perihelion (~150 km/sec), reaching 547 AU in 17 years. > In 2023, a team of scientists led by Turychev proposed the Sundiver concept,[1] whereby a solar sail craft can serve as a modular platform for various instruments and missions, including rendezvous with other Sundivers for resupply, in a variety of different self-sustaining orbits reaching velocities of ~5-10 AU/yr. Here is an interview with him laying out the entire plan.[2] It is the most interesting interview that I have seen in years, possibly ever. [0] [LINK] [1] [LINK] [2] this video
> the basic technology for "much faster speed" doesn't exist. …but we’re very close. The next technique will be flying near the sun then deploying a solar sail for a huge speed boost. Voyager goes 3 AU/yr, solar sail boost with todays technology will enable 7-9 AU/yr. Highly recommend watching Slava Turyshev discuss his work on an SGL telescope, which employs this technique. this video
> Really? I wouldn't think the sun is nearly massive enough to do what would be required here. You "just" need to get far enough away (~600AU). Interferometry is extremely difficult to pull this off with and it’s further complicated by the host star being so much brighter than the exoplanet. See this recent Fraser Cain interview with Dr. Slava Turyshev: this video
An interview with Dr. Slava Turyshev, who is one of the authors of the paper. They are talking about the project this video