Solar Sail???????

[Marik Wahoooka]

Actually, you can't get a 180 arc of motion with a solar sail. Sailing on earth only works because of the resistance the water provides against the hull. Without that force, all boats would always move in the direction of the wind. In the case of space, there isn't anything providing that restoring force, so the ability to use only a component of the force goes bye-bye.

Pity though... Solar sails just seem so frickin cool. Of course, if they are picking up distant stars, one could set them to pick up certain wavelengths and then coast in what ever direction you wished simply by finding a proper star and tuning the receptors to it. Hm...

I'll build an intergalactic spaceship, try it out, and get back to you.