Initiative for Interstellar Studies

Working towards the achievement of interstellar flight through knowledge to the stars - Starships in our lifetime

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Initiative for Interstellar Studies

Working towards the achievement of interstellar flight through knowledge to the stars — Starships in our lifetime.

Initiative for Interstellar Studies

Your Gateway to Interstellar Studies

If you are interested in travel to world's beyond our own, to other star systems, and the discovery of new knowledge and life, you have come to the right place. The 20th Century was the time for the planets. The 21st Century is the time for the stars. This is the portal to the Cosmos.

Sustainability

The Sustainability and Development Committee, has the purpose of seeking space-based technological solutions to solving problems on Earth and in space, human made or environmental, and improving the human condition and harmonising cultural relations. Read more » about Sustainability

Technical

The Technical Research Committee conducts innovative theoretical and experimental research and development across the broad spectrum of issues relating to interstellar studies, associated sciences and the arts. Read more » about Technical

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Featured News & Posts

i4is – BBC Sky at Night Feature

Great to see that our research has been featured in the well-known BBC Sky at Night Magazine: “Spacecraft powered by light sails and lasers offer a quicker way to explore the Solar System. But there’s a catch.” Check it out here! Congrats to Manasvi Lingam, Adam Hibberd, and Andreas Hein! (Image credit: BBC)

Astronomy Magazine Cover Feature: Project Lyra

Project Lyra is the cover feature of the bestselling astronomy magazine in the world! Check out the 10-page article of the June 2024 issue of Astronomy with a lot of great artwork based on the work by the Project Lyra team and beautifully executed by Maciej Rebisz. Get a digital copy here or a physical […]

Swarming Proxima: i4is wins NASA NIAC Grant

In collaboration with Space Initiatives Inc., we have succeeded in securing a prestigious NIAC grant. “Thomas Eubanks, Space Initiatives Inc. in Florida, believes a swarm of tiny spacecraft could travel to Proxima Centauri this century, sending back data about the Sun’s nearest interstellar neighbor using a novel laser sailcraft and laser communications.” More information here.

Principium

Principium is the community magazine of the Initiative for Interstellar Studies and the Institute for Interstellar Studies (USA). It features educational articles, accessible technical articles and news from the interstellar community and the wider world of space exploration. It presents an inspiring vision of the future humankind - if we work hard to achieve … Principium » about Principium

Axiom

In 2015 and 2016 we produced three issues of our own academic education journal titled 'Axiom'. These issues aim to question existing paradigms of thought or basic assumptions of knowledge and therefore facilitate new enquiries of thought. The papers published vary from discussions on anthropological interactions among cultures, to the nature of intelligence in the Cosmos. Axiom » about Axiom

Starship Engineer

The Starship Engineer course is our collective brand name for a set of education courses that we run. These courses are designed to teach participants the basics of spacecraft starship engineering. Typically this includes a team workshop exercise where the attendees complete a technical design solution challenge before presenting their solution to each other. Starship Engineer » about Starship Engineer

Laser Sail Propulsion

The Initiative for Interstellar Studies are not just focussed on theoretical discussions about interstellar flight. We are also planning ground demonstrations of critical technologies and even a low Earth orbit (LEO) space mission demonstrator. Technical programmes Project Dragonfly and Project Glowworm are investigating laser sail propulsion technology to make humanity a spacefaring species. Project Glowworm » about Project Glowworm