Tonight I Glimpsed LightSail

This article originally appeared on LightSail's Kickstarter page.

Tonight, for the first time, I glimpsed our spacecraft with my own eyes. It was just the faintest pinprick against the bright lights of the big city. But, there it was right on time and exactly per the coordinates. I’ve tried to see it a few times before, but clouds and lights obscured my view.

Tonight was the first time it was high enough above horizon (41ᵒ) and clear enough. It came out about 20 seconds later than I expected. But there it was. I know that by the time most of you read this, LightSail-A will probably have been incinerated in the atmosphere. That is and was the plan for this test flight. My few moments alone on the roof tonight with our LightSail spacecraft silently crossing the sky were very gratifying.

Thanks for your years of support. We are advancing space science and exploration. This mission is part of our mission. The best is yet ahead.

Onward!