NASA is already planning a mission to Alpha Centauri, but do not expect it anytime soon
NASA has begun planning a mission to Alpha Centauri, which could start in 2069.
Artist's rendering of Alpha Centauri star system
At 4,4 light years (which is an awful lot) Alpha Centauri nevertheless is the closest known star system to our Solar System. It consists of three stars - Alpha Centauri A, Alpha Centauri B and red swarf Proxima Centauri - but because they are so close, human eye can sees it as a one star, which is considered the third brightest amongst all.
Alpha Centauri star sizes and orbits compared to those of Solar System planets
The mission could start in 2069, 100 years after the first human on the Moon. The mission can start only after 52 years because the modern technology does not allow us to build a spacecraft that can reach Alpha Centauri. It is planned that the 2069 spacecraft will be able to achieve the average speed of 1/10 of the light speed, which would mean that it will take 44 years for a spacecraft to reach aforementioned star system. Another 4,4 years will be needed to send results back to the Earth in form of radiowaves, meaning we could obtain results in year 2117.
The spacecraft is likely to use a light sail
Artist's rendering of Proxima b
One of the main goals of such spacecraft would be the exploration of Proxima b, exoplanet on which life is potentially possible.
Congratulations! This post has been upvoted from the communal account, @minnowsupport, by alexanderrigov from the Minnow Support Project. It's a witness project run by aggroed, ausbitbank, teamsteem, theprophet0, someguy123, neoxian, followbtcnews/crimsonclad, and netuoso. The goal is to help Steemit grow by supporting Minnows and creating a social network. Please find us in the Peace, Abundance, and Liberty Network (PALnet) Discord Channel. It's a completely public and open space to all members of the Steemit community who voluntarily choose to be there.
If you would like to delegate to the Minnow Support Project you can do so by clicking on the following links: 50SP, 100SP, 250SP, 500SP, 1000SP, 5000SP. Be sure to leave at least 50SP undelegated on your account.
@originalworks
The @OriginalWorks bot has determined this post by @alexanderrigov to be original material and upvoted it!
To call @OriginalWorks, simply reply to any post with @originalworks or !originalworks in your message!