Private space flight--a new project
In an effort to promote space exploration, a private group plans today to launch the first spacecraft to sail in Earth orbit on the solar wind. If successful, the mission will provide scientific proof for a concept that has captivated science fiction for decades - that ships can travel great distances across the heavens under the power of giant solar sails nudged by the faint energy of light itself. The satellite, called Cosmos 1, was built in Russia to the specifications of the Planetary Society, a group based in Pasadena, Calif., that raised almost $4 million for the project.