Solar sails represent one of the most elegant concepts in space exploration: using sunlight itself to propel spacecraft ...

Meanwhile, a journey to the heliopause (the demarcation line for interstellar space where the sun’s magnetic forces cease to influence objects) could take between 4.2 and 5.3 years.

Related: Solar-sailing probes may soon get their moment in the sun NOAA's Office of Space Weather Observations oversees the agency's operational satellite systems in space, which provide crucial ...