Solar sails on a bajoran lightship.
A solar sail was a propulsion device that reflected photons from a star in order to push an object.
History and specifics[]
Between the 16th and 21st centuries Bajoran lightships used solar sails as their primary means of propulsion. Inspired by these ships, Benjamin Sisko built a lightship, the Baraka, in which he took his son as a companion during a flight. (DS9 episodes: "Explorers", "Accession")
A Risian luxury cruiser was equipped with a solar sail Quantum slipstream drive. (ST video game: Star Trek Online)
The Spectre class ships used an ion glide solar sail for covert propulsion. (NF novel: After the Fall)
In 2020, Shaun Christopher recalled that solar sails were used aboard some of Earth's satellites to help maintain their orbit. (TOS novel: The Rings of Time)
In 2268, a 1,000-year-old Sentient Tree derelict discovered in a remote sector of the galaxy near Albali Prime was propelled by solar sails. (Adventures RPG module: A Forest Apart)
The cosmozoan Argus IV creature propelled itself with solar sails when it hatched in 2274. (TOS comic: "It's a Living")
In 2286, the USS Yorktown's chief engineer rigged a solar sail to provide power to the ship's life support after the Whale Probe disabled it. (TOS movie: Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home)
In 2364, Wesley Crusher suggested using a solar sail to escape from an alien creature without attracting its attention, but William T. Riker said that method would be too slow. (TNG novel: Ghost Ship)
External links[]
- Solar sail article at Memory Alpha, the wiki for canon Star Trek.
- Solar sail article at Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.