We are very proud to announce that we have submitted a Mission Concept White Paper for the Decadal Survey on missions to interstellar objects: “Interstellar Now! Missions to and Sample Returns from Nearby Interstellar Objects” This was an intense collaborative effort between a group of international researchers: Andreas M. Hein (i4is), T. Marshall Eubanks (i4is/Space […]
Blog
Reaching 1I/’Oumuamua via Nuclear Thermal Rockets – A Gamechanger
Our Project Lyra Team has come up with an analysis of using nuclear thermal rockets for reaching the interstellar object 1I/’Oumuamua. It turns out that drastic reductions in mission duration (< 14 years for a launch in 2031) and spacecraft mass (1000s of kg vs. 100s of kg for conventional chemical propulsion) are possible.
i4is Magnetic Sail Paper in Acta Astronautica
We are very excited to share with you the publication of Nikolaos Perakis’ first single-authored paper in Elsevier’s peer-reviewed journal “Acta Astronautica”. The paper entitled “Maneuvering through solar wind using magnetic sails” explores the use of magnetic sails for interplanetary missions and can be accessed free of charge for the next 45 days using the […]
Newsletter: New videos & Technical Team updates
Welcome to the member newsletter of the Initiative for Interstellar Studies. We hope you are keeping well. In this newsletter we bring your attention to lots of new videos added to the members area as well as some new articles by the i4is Technical Team.
i4is Decadal Survey White Paper submitted
In collaboration with Space Initiatives (T. Marshall Eubanks) and the Paris Observatory (Jean Schneider), we have submitted the White Paper „Exobodies in Our Back Yard: Science from Missions to Nearby Interstellar Objects“, based on our work on Project Lyra. The Decadal Survey White Papers are a crucial first step towards defining future NASA missions in […]
The Cathedral and the Starship
What can we learn from cathedral builders from the Middle Ages for building a starship? In a blog article on Centauri Dreams, our Executive Director Andreas Hein elaborates on this question and provides some surprising answers.
Project Lyra on the Spaceshow
Adam Hibberd, a key member of Project Lyra, gave an interview for the Spaceshow, explaining in depth a mission to ‘Oumuamua, based on his OITS trajectory analysis tool. The recording can be found here.
With Laser Sails to ‘Oumuamua
In a new article, Adam Hibberd and Andreas M. Hein analyse how the interstellar object ‘Oumaumua could be reached via laser sails. They provide a trajectory analysis and the operations of the beaming infrastructure.
