One Kilogram Interstellar Colony Mission
£5.00
A. Mole (2013), JBIS, 66, pp.381-387
Refcode: 2013.66.381
Abstract:
Small interstellar colony probes based on nanotechnology will become possible long before giant multi-generation ships become affordable. A beam generator and magnetic sail can accelerate a one kg probe to .1 c, braking via the interstellar field can decelerate it, and the field in a distant solar system can allow it to manoeuvre to an extrasolar planet. A heat shield is used for landing and nanobots emerge to build ever-larger robots and construct colony infrastructure. Humans can then be generated from genomes stored as data in computer memory. Technology is evolving towards these capabilities and should reach the required level in fifty years. The plan appears to be affordable, with the principal cost being the beam generator, estimated at $17 billion.
