Development and Operation Summary of World’s First Solar Power Sail IKAROS

Abstract

Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) successfully achieved the world’s first solar power sail technology by IKAROS (Interplanetary Kite-craft Accelerated by Radiation Of the Sun) mission in 2010. It demonstrated a photon propulsion and power generation with thin-film solar cells during its interplanetary cruise. A sail of 200 m² was deployed and kept extended using centrifugal force of the spacecraft rotation. IKAROS also succeeded in accelerating and controlling the orbit by actively exploiting solar radiation pressure, and thus became the world’s first operational solar sail spacecraft flying an interplanetary voyage. This paper presents the mission and system design of IKAROS and its operation results.