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Fermi Explorer

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@FermiExplorer

The Fermi Explorer will be the first spacecraft to launch to another star. It will launch in 2029, on a journey that will take around 77,000 years, for USD 15M
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Fermi Explorer Verified account @FermiExplorer
Did you know that humanity has never launched a spacecraft to another star? That is about to change! We have created a non-profit to attempt to send humanityโ€™s ๐—ณ๐—ถ๐—ฟ๐˜€๐˜ ๐˜€๐—ฝ๐—ฎ๐—ฐ๐—ฒ๐—ฐ๐—ฟ๐—ฎ๐—ณ๐˜ ๐˜๐—ผ ๐—ฎ๐—ป๐—ผ๐˜๐—ต๐—ฒ๐—ฟ ๐˜€๐˜๐—ฎ๐—ฟโ€ฆ and we need your help!

We have formed non-profit The @FermiExplorer Mission with the goal of launching a minimum viable spacecraft to Alpha Centauri, the nearest star system, leaving in 3 years and arriving in around 80,000 years. We hope it will be both the first spacecraft to leave Earth for another star, and the last to arrive, as per this concept video!

The mission is intended to make the idea of interstellar travel real, and to encourage more people to confront one of humanityโ€™s biggest unanswered questions when we look beyond our planet: "Where is everybody?" (the Fermi Paradox)

The mission has four high-level objectives:
- Aim: To launch the first spacecraft to another star. It should get at least 99% of the way to the nearest star system, Alpha Centauri, within 80,000 years.
- Payload: It should have at least a 1kg, 10x10x10 cm payload.
- Schedule: It should launch before the end of 2029
- Cost: It should cost less than $15M to design, build, launch, and operate.

The mission was planned with the help of the folks at @astrodigitalgeo, @MattGialich and the folks at @AstroForge, and @alexwg+@matthew_pines physical AI lab PSI, who devised the final mission profile. The mission will be executed by full-time program manager @GarrettJameson, who joins us after 10 years as a US Air Force Officer, in collaboration with a US bus manufacturing partner that will be selected over the coming months.

We will need your help to complete the mission, so if the idea of the mission excites you, please check out the Fermi Explorer website in the comments to find out more about why we are doing the mission and how to get involved!

Thanks to London Studio @ZeroOneCreative and @ashkan01C for producing the concept video ๐Ÿ™๐Ÿ™
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Fermi Explorer Verified account @FermiExplorer
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Anu Bonthalapati Verified account @anu_bonth Oct 28
78,000 years! That is how long it will take for a mission designed by the team at @FermiExplorer. But this isn't any ordinary mission. It is going out towards our first star, Alpha Centauri.

So when Philip Johnston, founder of Fermi Explorer, announced this once in a lifetime mission, I HAD TO bring him on the show.

The Fermi Explorer Mission has a goal of launching a minimum viable spacecraft to Alpha Centauri, the nearest star system, leaving in 3 years and arriving in around 80,000 years.

Chapters ๐Ÿ“Œ:
A 78,000-year journey
Fermi Explorerโ€™s mission to Alpha Centauri
The Fermi paradox and humanityโ€™s future
The Voyager inspiration
Spacecraft design, power, and propulsion
The Oberth effect, explained
First Resonance (sponsor)
Solar escape and Jupiter gravity assists
The $10โ€“15 million mission estimate
Communicating from deep space
Science, art, and messages from children
The team and potential collaborators
A community effort: how to get involved

We are proud to partner with First Resonance, the sponsor of today's video. Learn more about First Resonance here: hubs.ly/Q04Cd2s50

Learn more about how you can get involved in the Fermi Explorer mission here: fermiexplorer.org
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