But can the craft survive the cosmic radiation and make the 20-year voyage to Alpha Centauri?

NASA researchers and Stephen Hawking are coming together to develop a nano-starship that can travel one-fifth or 20 percent of the speed of light.

If successful, the ship, called “StarChip” could reach Earth’s nearest star system, Alpha Centauri, in 20 years.

In April, a team of scientists from the Korea Institute of Science and Technology (KIST) including Stephen Hawking announced the Breakthrough Starshot project to explore interstellar space. But whether the electronics on such a tiny, vulnerable spacecraft survive for 20 years in the hostility of space was the question?.[Continue Reading..]