Friday, January 19, 2024

Fast Space Travel

(Image: https://www.iconfinder.com/kreasikanvas)

Determining the time to complete interstellar space travel is a matter of simple math. Time = distance/velocity. Our closest neighbor, Alpha Centauri, is 38 trillion kilometers away. As of this date, the fastest probe made by humans is the NASA Parker Solar Probe, which achieved a velocity of 386,863 kilometers per hour. Such a craft would require over 10,000 years to reach Alpha Centauri. 

Aeon recently posted a five-minute video explaining a few ways we might be able to reduce interstellar travel time. It is appropriately named: "Go incredibly fast."

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