NASA and Stephen Hawking partnered to build a small starship that can travel at one-fifth the speed of light. Dubbed "StarChip," the tiny spacecraft may arrive in Alpha Centauri, the Earth's nearest star system, in 20 years.
NASA Proposals for the StarChip
Independent revealed that Stephen Hawking announced the Breakthrough Starshot project in April 2016. The theoretical physicist is supported by a group from the Korea Institute of Science and Technology.
It is still uncertain whether the small starship can last the two-decade trip, but NASA is proposing some options on how to keep the StarChip operational. According to NASA, the StarChip's flight route can be adjusted to avoid high-radiation areas that can stop the spacecraft from functioning.
The ship can last longer in space, although it is not entirely protected from damage and deterioration. NASA also suggested building the StarChip with a protective shield over the electronics, although it will increase its overall size and weight and slow down movement. NASA also proposed installing a silicon chip that can automatically repair itself.
Science Alert reported that the researchers used an experimental 'gate-all-around' nanowire transistor and said that it is possible to use electric current to heat the chip within the StarChip. The result is auto-healing of any damage or deterioriation that may be caused by radiation exposure.
The chip contained in the StarChip will be powered down every few years, so the transistor heating can repair can radiation-induced effects. The chip will again power on as soon as it sufficiently heals.
NASA, Stephen Hawking StarChip Project Remains in Theory
In the meantime, the research in building the StarChip is still in the theoretical stage. Researchers still have several aspects to address, as well as major problems to determine and solve to ensure the success of the StarChip.
The StarChip also has to expect other kinds of threats in outer space like dust, gas and cosmic collisions, among others. Stephen Hawking previously mentioned that they are confronted with the limit of a huge void between the Earth and the stars.
Currently, they can transcend that limitation with the use of light beams, light sails and the StarChip, the lightest spacecraft ever built. He expects the StarChip to reach Alpha Centauri within a generation. Hawking added that as human, our nature is to fly, which is why they commit to the grand project into the cosmos.
