Princeton University Special Colloquium

For as long as humans have looked up into the night sky, we have wondered what might be out there and dreamed of venturing to the stars. Thanks to the dramatic scientific progress of the past century, there is now a technologically viable path toward realizing this ancient dream. Breakthrough Starshot is an initiative to send a spacecraft to another star within the next 25 years. This talk will provide a brief introduction to the challenges associated with sending a man-made object to 20% the speed of light, along with some possible ways to address them. Breakthrough is currently embarking on an ambitious research program and is interested in fostering collaborations among researchers in industry, academia, and government laboratories. We will conclude with an extended question-and-answer session and open discussion.