Astronomy Department
Columbia University, New York, NY

As a contribution to a white paper on a novel spinning solar sail concept, I devised and carried out a stress analysis of the mechanical components of a proposed design. The analysis included material selection (and corresponding research into Mylar and carbon nanotubes), as well as a derivation of the maximum stresses the design would experience. In the analysis, I considered radial changes in stress based on proposed dimensions, material density, and angular velocity, as well as both round and flat connectors. I also explored the idea of tapering connectors to save material and mass, which is crucial for solar sail systems.

Results remain unpublished, but the associated Python script is available on GitHub here.