I had many times stated the advantages of exploring the solar system that is closest to the sun first. Now I thought of a way to explore Mercury. The prerequisite of this mission is the relay satellites to be placed on the Lagrange points L4 and L5 between the Sun and Mercury. These satellites will double as space telescopes as well.
My proposition is to send a Mercury explorer which would collect data from the surface of the planet year long. In order to maintain high connectivity window with the explorer, relay satellites are necessary. It is much easier to send two satellites at the orbitally stable Lagrange points of Mercury and the Sun compared to sending low orbit satellites which would require many of them to maintain continuous reception. Additionally, Lagrangian satellites require much less orbital speed than low orbit counterparts. More importantly they would double as stereoscopic telescopes observing the sun.
These satellites would be put to orbit using the deep space propulsion 2 design I proposed earlier. Another advantage of this propulsion system is its hollow tank used for storing the solid propellant blocks. Once the satellite is at the Lagrange Point, the solid booster and its nozzle would be ejected. Then, the retracted telescope lens inside the empty tank would be extended to form a space telescope with telecom relay. The explosion of the propellent will happen inside the booster shell, therefore the storage tank will have no contamination.
The satellites will be powered by nuclear batteries. The reason is close proximity to the sun. Solar wind and storms would dislocate the satellite if it has a large cross section which would be the case with large solar panels. This strategy would reduce the valuable ion propulsion gas consumption and extend the life of the satellite.
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