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Space

NASA's solar sail spacecraft is visible in the night sky. Here's how to see it

Space
Summary
Nutrition label

77% Informative

NASA 's Advanced Composite Solar Sail System (ACS3) launched in April 2024 atop a Rocket Lab Electron rocket.

Solar sails work similarly to nautical sails, but instead of being pushed by wind, they are impacted by the pressure of sunlight as photons bounce off of the reflective material they're made from.

The ACS3 spacecraft deployed its 60-square-foot solar sail on Aug. 29 , operating at an altitude about 600 miles above Earth .

VR Score

85

Informative language

87

Neutral language

58

Article tone

semi-formal

Language

English

Language complexity

50

Offensive language

not offensive

Hate speech

not hateful

Attention-grabbing headline

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Known propaganda techniques

not detected

Time-value

long-living