Solar sail with superconducting circular current-carrying wire

Abstract A solar sail presents a large sheet of low areal density membrane and is an elegant propellant-less propulsion system for future exploration of the Solar System and beyond. To date, the study of sail membrane deployment strategies has attracted considerable attention. In this work we present a novel means for deploying and stretching the circular solar sail. We consider the superconducting current loop attached to the thin membrane and predict that a superconducting current loop can deploy and stretch the circular solar sail membrane. In the framework of a strict mathematical approach based on classical electrodynamics and the theory of elasticity the magnetic field induced by the superconducting current loop and elastic properties of a circular solar sail membrane and wire loop are analyzed. The formulas for the wire and sail membrane stresses and strains caused by the current in the superconducting wire are derived. The obtained analytical expressions can be applied to a wide range of solar sail sizes. Numerical calculations for the sail of radii 5 m to 150 m made of CP1 membrane of thickness of 3.5 μ m attached to Bi - 2212 superconducting wire with the cross-section radii of 0.5 mm to 10 mm are presented. Calculations are performed for the engineering current densities of 100 A/mm2 to 1000 A/mm2. Our calculations demonstrate the feasibility of solar sail deployment for future exploration of deep space by means of the light pressure propellant.