11-06-10 Japan unfurls Ikaros solar sail in space

Japanese scientists are celebrating the successful deployment of their solar sail,Ikaros.The 200-sq-m (2,100-sq-ft) membrane is attached to a small disc-shaped spacecraft that was put in orbit last month by an H-IIA rocket.Ikaros will demonstrate the principle of using sunlight as a simple and efficient means of propulsion.The technique has long been touted as a way of moving spacecraft around the Solar System using no chemical fuels.The mission team will be watching to see if Ikaros produces a measurable acceleration,and how well its systems are able to steer the craft through space.The Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (Jaxa) said in a statement that its scientists and engineers had begun to deploy the solar sail on 3 June (JST).On 10 June,Jaxa said,confirmation was received that the sail had expanded successfully.Some thin-film solar cells embedded in the membrane were even generating power,it added.The deployment took place 7.7 million km from Earth.