What Types of Interstellar Spacecraft Have Been Proposed?

Miniature interstellar spacecraft, which consists of a computer chip called "stars" as the hull. Milner showed the original finished product of the "star film" at the press conference.

Miniature starship

As for Hawking's plan, Chinese experts believe that the idea is good, but it has science fiction.

"Strictly speaking, the spacecraft proposed by Hawking is not a 'spaceship', it is just a few centimeter square flying object, and the laser propulsion technology it envisions is also very complicated in engineering," said Pang Zhihao, an expert on space technology.

"Taking the solar sail as an example, the concept was born in the 1920s. This method requires a huge mirror to illuminate the sunlight onto the windsurfing board with a large area, which is very difficult in practical applications. The speed of progress is not fast. It is not difficult to put forward the idea of laser-propulsed 'spaceship'. It is also possible to develop a prototype before 2050, but it is 'too far away' to fly to Centaur. Of course, on a longer time scale This kind of laser propulsion may have promise, but it must achieve a major technological breakthrough. "Pang Zhihao said.

"But Hawking's laser 'spaceship' can be used for exploratory research as science fiction," said Pang Zhihao. "You can first strive to achieve it technically, without having to immediately pursue its practical value. Send objects made by humans a few light years away. Cosmic space has groundbreaking engineering significance, and if it is possible to install a detection device on this miniature 'spaceship' after exploration, it will be possible to mention scientific value. ^[1]