Interstellar and Intergalactic Space Travel

[Belschaft]

Once you get a few millions miles past Pluto there's actually a huge fence. The universe doesn't like immigrants, so we're stuck here.

True, but like the yanks they only built it a quarter of the way round.

[Call to power]

As far as anyone knows there is no way to create a propoltion engine that will take us faster than light. From what I understand, theories regarding FTL travel basically break down into two fields:

1) the "star trek" method. Use some sort of engine to essentially "warp" space, perhaps heavily focused gravity generators. This will bend space in such a way so that the distance we need to travel will be greatly reduced.

2) the "stargate" method. Essentially create a way to engineer stable, macro wormholes to allow transport between them, making galactic transportation a matter of stepping through a doorway.

why is it everything sciency about the future could well end up tearing a peep hole in the universe where we happen to be? lets go back to firing cannons at the moon!

[Galloism]

why is it everything sciency about the future could well end up tearing a peep hole in the universe where we happen to be? lets go back to firing cannons at the moon!

It would be kind of funny if we ripped a hole in space and destroyed the earth because we were trying to leave it. You know, it would be funny in an ironic way. Sadly, no one would be around to appreciate it.

[Saint Clair Island]

I dunno, I like the idea of an Infinite Improbability Drive. Things are more likely to happen based on how improbable they are, and there's little more improbable than FTL travel.

"Dancing with the stars" could put out a good episode.

Human beings could exhibit common courtesy and decency in public.

[Saint Clair Island]

why is it everything sciency about the future could well end up tearing a peep hole in the universe where we happen to be? lets go back to firing cannons at the moon!

It would be kind of funny if we ripped a hole in space and destroyed the earth because we were trying to leave it. You know, it would be funny in an ironic way. Sadly, no one would be around to appreciate it.

I'm sure the aliens who've been monitoring our feeble attempts at interstellar travel would laugh their asses (or equivalent body part) off. Except for one or two humorless souls who would watch the devastation and say "We pegged these guys for diplomatic contact in two hundred years?!"

[Call to power]

why is it everything sciency about the future could well end up tearing a peep hole in the universe where we happen to be? lets go back to firing cannons at the moon!

It would be kind of funny if we ripped a hole in space and destroyed the earth because we were trying to leave it. You know, it would be funny in an ironic way. Sadly, no one would be around to appreciate it.

well at least it would be fast theres nothing worse than waiting 5 minuets for the nukes to melt you and your totally stuck in an elevator with a stranger

this is why I carry snakes and ladders with me

[New Central Europe]

Hell no. To leave the solar system we would need FTL travell wich is physically impossible. Maybe we can colonize mars and maybe a couple of moons orbiting Sauturn or Jupiter, but theres no way we're leaving the solar system.

Go at 0.5c and you'll reach Alpha Centari in about 8.4 years.

[Belschaft]

Hell no. To leave the solar system we would need FTL travell wich is physically impossible. Maybe we can colonize mars and maybe a couple of moons orbiting Sauturn or Jupiter, but theres no way we're leaving the solar system.

Go at 0.5c and you'll reach Alpha Centari in about 8.4 years.

Get me to 0.5c then.

[Ifreann]

Hell no. To leave the solar system we would need FTL travell wich is physically impossible. Maybe we can colonize mars and maybe a couple of moons orbiting Sauturn or Jupiter, but theres no way we're leaving the solar system.

Go at 0.5c and you'll reach Alpha Centari in about 8.4 years.

Get me to 0.5c then.

*commissions LG to make a big slingshot*

[Call to power]

Hell no. To leave the solar system we would need FTL travell wich is physically impossible. Maybe we can colonize mars and maybe a couple of moons orbiting Sauturn or Jupiter, but theres no way we're leaving the solar system.

Go at 0.5c and you'll reach Alpha Centari in about 8.4 years.

define reach if you mean as a loose collection of charred radioactive dust then yes I'm sure you could but the holiday snaps in the speedos would never come out as intended

[Saint Clair Island]

Hell no. To leave the solar system we would need FTL travell wich is physically impossible. Maybe we can colonize mars and maybe a couple of moons orbiting Sauturn or Jupiter, but theres no way we're leaving the solar system.

Go at 0.5c and you'll reach Alpha Centari in about 8.4 years.

define reach if you mean as a loose collection of charred radioactive dust then yes I'm sure you could but the holiday snaps in the speedos would never come out as intended

Anyway, I'm not sure what you would do on Alpha Centauri. It's got nothing on Vegas as a vacation destination.

[New Central Europe]

Hell no. To leave the solar system we would need FTL travell wich is physically impossible. Maybe we can colonize mars and maybe a couple of moons orbiting Sauturn or Jupiter, but theres no way we're leaving the solar system.

Go at 0.5c and you'll reach Alpha Centari in about 8.4 years.

Get me to 0.5c then.

Step 1. Launch Starship
Step 2. When near to sun unfurl solar sails
Step 2.5. Help with giant lasers once sunlight gets to weak
Step 3. When past bow shock engage fusion rockets

[Call to power]

Anyway, I'm not sure what you would do on Alpha Centauri. It's got nothing on Vegas as a vacation destination.

gets you out the house I guess

[Galloism]

why is it everything sciency about the future could well end up tearing a peep hole in the universe where we happen to be? lets go back to firing cannons at the moon!

It would be kind of funny if we ripped a hole in space and destroyed the earth because we were trying to leave it. You know, it would be funny in an ironic way. Sadly, no one would be around to appreciate it.

I'm sure the aliens who've been monitoring our feeble attempts at interstellar travel would laugh their asses (or equivalent body part) off. Except for one or two humorless souls who would watch the devastation and say "We pegged these guys for diplomatic contact in two hundred years?!"

Of course, the ones in charge of observation and watching the project would undoubtedly start placing bets just before the big day to see if mankind was going to succeed or destroy itself. "Ork, you lose. Earth was sucked into an alternate dimension." "Dammit. Here's the 20 cajlins."

[Call to power]

Step 2.5. Help with giant lasers once sunlight gets to weak
Step 3. When past bow shock engage fusion rockets

we totally have the technology to do this and by just ignoring radiation (I like how you add getting near to the giant nuclear explosion), man chasing comets and highspeed dust it totally makes the problems go away

[The Alma Mater]

As far as anyone knows there is no way to create a propoltion engine that will take us faster than light. From what I understand, theories regarding FTL travel basically break down into two fields:

1) the "star trek" method. Use some sort of engine to essentially "warp" space, perhaps heavily focused gravity generators. This will bend space in such a way so that the distance we need to travel will be greatly reduced.

2) the "stargate" method. Essentially create a way to engineer stable, macro wormholes to allow transport between them, making galactic transportation a matter of stepping through a doorway.

I dunno, I like the idea of an Infinite Improbability Drive. Things are more likely to happen based on how improbable they are, and there's little more improbable than FTL travel.

Quantum teleportation remarkably similar to the idea of the probability drive is theoretically possible.
Of course, convincing all the atoms of the ship to be around the next star at once may be slightly more tricky than the other two ideas.

[New Central Europe]

Step 2.5. Help with giant lasers once sunlight gets to weak
Step 3. When past bow shock engage fusion rockets

we totally have the technology to do this and by just ignoring radiation (I like how you add getting near to the giant nuclear explosion)

You can guard aganist that

man chasing comets

The Oort Clould isn't dense

highspeed dust

One Word: Aerogel

[The Tofu Islands]

The spoiler tags were annoying...

What do you think?

Too vague a question.

Is it possible?

Interstellar? Yes, definitely. Very, very, very impractical, however.
Intergalactic? In some cases, maybe. However much more impractical than interstellar travel.

The problem mainly involves massive distances and timespans.

Can we do it?

In theory, yes. In practice, it would take far too long. And the engineering required to make a craft fail-safe for that long a period might be beyond our reach.

Can we do it now

Perhaps, but it's not worth it.

The fate of the human race (maybe) in your hands

I doubt it.

[G3N13]

What do you think? Is it possible? Can we do it? Can we do it now

Possible? Yes.

Can we do it? Yes.

Can we do it now? Yes.


If we define 'now' as century for interstellar travel or millions of years for intergalactic travel.

edit:
ie. 'Now' meaning the fastest possible schedule if we 'get right on it'.

[Blasphemulopia]

I think one has to think outside the box when it comes to interstellar and intergalactic travel. Conventional means of travel might be illogical due to the extreme distance and time requirements. The breakthrough would more likely involve manipulating space and time.

[JarVik]

For interstellar travel the best we've currently got would be one of the varieties of ion drive which supposedly can reach speeds that are a modest fraction of light speed. It would likely take decades to get to Alpha Centari, the nearest star so its sorta theoretically possible to send a highly automated probe but not people.

I love space exploration, so I hope we improve on the drive mechanisim and send a flottila of probes to the nearest stars before 2050. Sure its a long term project but I think as a society we need to think more long-term anyways.

For human exploration and colonization I don't think we know enough yet but I hope this becomes a reality sometime in the future. I think one of the biggest barriers to human coloniation of farway worlds will finding ones with the right air presure as well as temperature and O2 content of an alien atmospere.

[Pope Joan]

As the Oyarsa of Malacandra (Mars) says to the space travellers who want to colonize his planet;

"And what will you do when all the habitable planets are used up, hm?"

The colonists seriously doubt that will ever happen.

"And when you have colonized the galaxy, will your species bear even the slightest resemblance to the one you know now?"

They neither know nor care.

C.S. Lewis, Out of the Silent Planet

[Lunatic Goofballs]

Go at 0.5c and you'll reach Alpha Centari in about 8.4 years.

Get me to 0.5c then.

*commissions LG to make a big slingshot*

*begins construction* Inertia might be a bitch, but what the hell.

[Californian Mod Haters]

Once you get a few millions miles past Pluto there's actually a huge fence. The universe doesn't like immigrants, so we're stuck here.

True, but like the yanks they only built it a quarter of the way round.

Maybe, we haven't heard from the pionieer probes in a long time...

[Ifreann]

THE DEAD HAVE RISEN AND ARE HERE FOR OUR BRAINS!