If an alien in the Alpha Centauri star system were craving pizza, it would take tens of thousands of years to deliver it ...

We spoke to a genuine astrophysicist about the accuracy of Star Trek's approach to interstellar travel, the holodeck, and the ...

The laws of physics may place hard limits on our ability to explore the galaxy. From time dilation to extreme energy demands, the barriers are staggering. This video explores whether interstellar ...

Professor Stephen Hawking onstage during the New Space Exploration Initiative 'Breakthrough Starshot' Announcement at One World Observatory on April 12, 2016 in New York City It takes a bold person to ...

“There is a silence in the night sky that has bothered me for as long as I can remember.” That observation, attributed to American physicist Richard Feynman, captures a tension many people feel when ...

The slingshot, called TARS, could in theory accelerate a small spacecraft up to 620 miles per second. When you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission. Here’s how it ...

Engineers are developing a concept for interstellar travel using a swarm of 1,000 ultra-light "laser sails." The mission aims to send these sails to Proxima b, an exoplanet 4.25 light-years away, ...

AUSTIN (KXAN) — Exploring beyond our solar system could have lasting impacts here on Earth, and scientists, creatives and industry experts gather at the University of Texas at Austin this week to ...

This article was published in Scientific American’s former blog network and reflects the views of the author, not necessarily those of Scientific American In an earlier blog post about Christopher ...