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Sunpetal Explorer solar sailcraft by Zarpaulus

Sunpetal Explorer solar sailcraft

Zarpaulus

Another ship drawn by Ruddy Rose at https://www.instagram.com/anonymous_on_the_net/ for my Stardrives project. Which made funding just over a month ago! http://kck.st/3whPP09


The Sunpetal-class explorer is just 42 meters long fully extended. It mounts a single low output fusion engine and a set of 12 gimbaled verniers for maneuvering and acceleration. Solar sails can accelerate a thousand kilometers a minute in interstellar space. Typically crewed by 2-3 explorers and scientists but can accommodate up to 6 crew and 50 more passengers in cryonic stasis. Enough to survey a star system for future colonization by larger arks.


Stardrives contains statistics for a wide variety of slower-than-light drives, given how much time scientists and authors have spent exploring their feasibility, but solar sails are unique among them. For one thing they are considerably faster when pushed by a laser projected from another ship or station than relying on natural sunlight. For another that sail makes them a much bigger and less maneuverable target when deployed, in game terms they act as if two size categories larger. They can retract the sail if they suddenly find themselves in combat, but that takes time.


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