According to the report of the Physicist Organization Network on January 9 (Beijing time), the electronic research laboratory at the University of Helsinki in Finland used ultrasonic welding technology to successfully create a 1-kilometre “electric sail” cable, and people used solar wind to promote satellite space. The dream of the device is about to come true.

The “electric sail” full name “electric solar sail” is a new concept of aerospace propulsion. It uses the tremendous repulsion generated by the solar wind momentum to propel the spacecraft forward. This idea was first proposed.

An entire electric sail consists of 50 to 100 elongated conductive wires, each about 25 to 50 microns thick and 20 kilometers long. In addition, there is a solar-powered electron gun (a few hundred watts power) on the spacecraft to maintain positive voltage (usually 20 kV) on its own and the cable, and its electric field extends into the surrounding solar wind plasma for about 100 meters. As soon as the charged particles in the electric field enter the electric field, they will be subjected to a huge impact, and the resulting interaction will transfer the momentum of the solar wind to the spacecraft.

Compared to ion engines and other methods, electric sails generate enormous thrust relative to their mass and power consumption, and almost no thrust is lost. Basically, they can move indefinitely. The electric sail has aroused the interest of many space scientists, but whether or not it can produce the most important part of it - slender metal cables, scientists have never been the bottom.

Four years ago, experts in the field of global ultrasonic welding believed that it was impossible to weld such thin metal wires together. The head of the study, Edward Haegstrom of the Physics Department at the University of Helsinki, said that they have pioneered the use of ultrasonic welding technology to connect aluminum filaments together to create such cables. At present, the manufacturer has already produced a 1-kilometer long ultrasonic welding aluminum cable.

However, an aluminum cable cannot be used as an electric sail. Because there are tiny meteors everywhere, it will soon cut off the cable. Therefore, it is necessary to connect multiple cables at intervals of one centimeter so that the micro-meteor can only cut off individual cables. Without destroying the entire electric sail. However, this study proved that it is possible to create a whole electric sail. They will also test the predicted electric sail driving force this year.

Cable production is fully automated and controlled by computers. The current production speed is about 3 meters per hour, through optical real-time inspection, check each connection point to ensure quality. The speed of production will increase in the future and quality will be ensured during the production process. Due to gravity, the cable will be straightened in space, so that the entire electric sail will have a pull force of only 5 grams, while the cable made by the University of Helsinki will have a wire-wire welding point capable of withstanding 10 g of tension.

These cables will soon see results in space. The first to use it is Estonia’s small satellite, ESTCube-1, which will be launched in March. It will use a 15-metre-long electric sail and researchers will test its driving force. This is a breakthrough, and no one has yet conducted an experimental test of the predicted electric sail driving force. The next one will be used on the Aalto-1 small satellite at the Aalto University in Finland. It is planned to launch in 2014 and use a 100-metre-long electric sail. (Reporter Chang Lijun)

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