Solar Sails...

[Taylirious]

& swashbuckling adventures around our solar system?

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Solar_sail

Doesn't seem exciting but I am wondering how this could work and would it be viable for science fiction?

It seems DOA when people want more, like warp drives.

Is this an interesting tech or just another thing along the pipe dream?

 

[Tosk]

Anything is possible once you grow a Van Dyke.

 

[gturner]

It's an interesting tech, and NASA plans to use it to some extent. The ISP is infinite, even though the thrust to weight ratio is a bit underwhelming. It could be especially useful on routes through the inner solar system, such as missions to Mercury and Venus.

I'm particularly interested in colonizing Mercury, due to the massive amount of solar energy and probable amount of heavy metals, but colonizing the clouds of Venus is also a fascinating option.

 

[publiusr]

Speaking of a Mercury mission
http://nextbigfuture.com/2014/07/propellantlesss-propulsion-with.html

That's an E sail.