\tScience & Exploration<\/p>\n
\t\t\t\t\t\t07\/04\/2026
\n\t\t\t\t872 views
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t17 likes<\/p>\n
Lasers could one day steer solar sails and adjust a satellite\u2019s position in outer space, thanks to graphene. An experiment on a gravity rollercoaster ride showed how this innovative material has the potential to revolutionise propulsion beyond Earth.<\/p>\n
An international research team boarded ESA\u2019s 86th parabolic flight campaign in May 2025 with ultralight graphene aerogels, then hit them with light during zero gravity phases to observe their reaction under space-like conditions.<\/p>\n
The effect of the laser during the microgravity phases was startling: the graphene samples shot forward instantly.<\/p>\n
\t\t\tGraphene and lasers for space propulsion
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\tAccelerating science<\/p>\n
Inside a vacuum chamber, a continuous laser beamed on three small cubes made of graphene aerogel. A high-speed camera recorded the action through glass tubes.<\/p>\n
Graphene aerogels are ultralight, highly porous materials that merge graphene\u2019s exceptional electrical conductivity with the structural advantages of aerogel architecture. They maintain strong mechanical performance despite their low density.<\/p>\n
\t\t\t\t\t\t\tGraphene experiment on parabolic flight<\/a><\/p>\n \u201cThe reaction was fast and furious. Before you could even begin to blink, the graphene aerogels experienced large accelerations. It was all over in 30 milliseconds,\u201d explains Marco Braibanti, ESA\u2019s project scientist for the experiment Light\u2011driven propulsion of graphene aerogels in microgravity.<\/p>\n Researchers at the Universit\u00e9 Libre de Bruxelles (ULB) in Belgium and Khalifa University in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) led the study.<\/p>\n Under Earth\u2019s gravity conditions, the aerogels barely moved at all. The results, published in Advanced Science<\/a>, demonstrate that microgravity unlocks the potential of light propulsion for graphene aerogels in terms of velocity, thrust and distance.<\/p>\n \t\t\t\t\t\t\tGraphene and lasers experiment setup<\/a><\/p>\n Another finding was the ability to control the propulsion by tuning the light beam.<\/p>\n \u201cThe stronger the laser, the greater the acceleration. The laser pulse triggers a sharp acceleration peak, after which the aerogels slow down,\u201d adds Marco.<\/p>\n \tGraphene lights the way<\/p>\n Although still fundamental science, these promising results show that using light to propel graphene aerogels in space is not only possible, but remarkably efficient.<\/p>\n