Czech scientists continue "listening out" for missing spacecraft

Shortly after its launch on Tuesday evening, the world's first solar-sail-powered spacecraft, Cosmos 1, fell silent. But its command stations around the world, including one in the Czech Republic, haven't given up, and have continued trying to pick up some signal from the missing craft.

Solar-sail-powered spacecraft Cosmos 1, photo: CTK

Despite the pessimistic outlook on Wednesday morning, Czech scientists at the Ionospheric and Telemetry Observatory in North Bohemia kept trying to establish contact with Cosmos 1, the first craft designed to use light from the Sun to power space travel. As Frantisek Hruska from the North Bohemian observatory told Radio Prague, the Czechs had been invited to join the 4-million-dollar project by their Russian colleagues cooperating with the US organisation, the Planetary Society.

"We are one of the five tracking and command stations around the world and our job is to receive signals from the satellite and transmit commands at times when the satellite is visible from our territory. To the east of the United States we are the first station, then there are two in Russia and two mobile stations that were supposed to monitor the craft immediately after take-off."

On Wednesday morning, amid uncertainty as to the whereabouts of the craft, scientists at the North Bohemian observatory were not giving up hope.

Antenna for receiving signals from Cosmos 1, photo: CTK

"So far we have no concrete information, so we're continuing in our programme as planned. During each expected flypast over Czech territory we try to pick up any signal we can and we regularly transmit commands to switch on all transmitters onboard the satellite. Even if it is on a different orbit than was calculated, we should pick up its signal."

The spacecraft was equipped with sails made of ultra-thin foil, which reflects photons coming from the Sun and propels the craft. The foil was made to disintegrate fast as the craft's lifespan was scheduled only for weeks. Frantisek Hruska again.

"The project was scheduled for one month and was only meant to test the effects of the solar sails and to prove the feasibility of such missions. Based on that experience and data, new improved crafts would be designed which could last longer in space and could transport people or material to the Moon or to the planets."