Technologies

This Hyperspeed Space Sail Could Take Us to Next-Door Star Systems

For years, physicists have been trying to perfect a way to catapult space probes at a fifth the speed of light. One team is flagging an important section of the blueprint.

Only about 4 light-years away from our solar system lies Alpha Centauri, another bustling space neighborhood. It’s anchored by three stars with the same job as our sun, holds planets analogous to our eight famous orbs and may even have an Earth twin hanging out in the habitable zone. Almost like an alternate reality, the star system is a tantalizing region for space explorers.

There’s just one, glaring issue. With our present technology, spacecraft sent toward Alpha Centauri wouldn’t arrive until somewhere around the year 82022. That’s why, in 2016, late astrophysicist Stephen Hawking and investor Yuri Milner launched Breakthrough Starshot — an initiative to send microchip-size space probes over to Alpha Centauri at 20% the speed of light, reducing the whopping travel time to a mere 20 years.

Their blueprint centers on a lightsail that harnesses the power of photons, aka light particles, beamed from an Earth-based laser, instead of wind like a traditional sail. Though it’d fit right in with the sci-fi tech of Star Trek, the idea gained so much popularity that researchers everywhere began studying how to bring the contraption to fruition, hoping to produce a hyperdrive that blasts around the universe at dizzying rates.

Hailing from the University of Pennsylvania, one such team is tackling a big piece of the puzzle. In a pair of papers published this month in the journal Nano Letters, researchers suggested a way to ensure these innovative spacecraft don’t tear from intense laser pulses during the two-decade-long interstellar voyage. Basically, the researchers propose the sail must “billow” in space’s void like standard boat sails wave amid Earth’s winds.

“Some of the lightsail figures from early on were billowing, some were not, but it was not well studied,” said study author Igor Bargatin, an associate professor in the department of mechanical engineering and applied mechanics at the University of Pennsylvania. “What we did is show you definitely need billowing.

“We realized people haven’t really looked at the mechanics of the problem, and in particular, the possibility of tears,” Bargatinadded. “We want to make sure if and when this idea is realized, people pay attention to things that could happen during acceleration.

“We don’t want these sails to fail.”

Interstellar ship parameters

Picture a boat venturing out to sea with a sail attached. The sail will heave with every gust of wind and propel the vessel forward. That propulsion happens because wind hitting the sail bounces off, creating pressure.

Lightsails aren’t all that different.

“When the photons hit our lightsail, they get reflected and they also create pressure,” Bargatin said. “The exact mechanism is a little different because we’re talking light versus actual molecules of air. But they create pressure nonetheless in both cases.” In fact, these devices have already been proven effective to a degree.

In 2010, the Japanese Aerospace Exploration Agency launched a lightsail mission dubbed Ikaros and deemed it a success. In 2019, the experimental LightSail 2 followed suit. Funded by a Kickstarter campaign started by Bill Nye and Neil DeGrasse Tyson, it moved a small satellite in space using pure photon power.

But both Ikaros and LightSail 2 used light emanating from the sun, in contrast to Breakthrough Starshot’s vision of laser beams.

Though sunlight reduces the risk of tears, it’s too weak for Starshot’s endeavor. Plus, Bargatin says, Starshot light pulses must happen within a relatively short period of time because once the lightsail gets too far from Earth, scientists lose their ability to effectively accelerate it.

In short, to reach a fifth the speed of light — so it can access Alpha Centauri in the desired 20 years — within a strict window, lightsails would need extremely strong light pulses possible only with lasers.

“Designed pressures on our lightsails are not huge,” Bargatin said. “They’re about the same as having a penny on your hand.” In scientific terms, the pressure adds up to about 10 pascals, Bargatin says, but consider how we go about our lives without worrying about light pressure at all.

Ten Pascals of light force requires a significant amount of laser power, so unlike Ikaros’ dance with wispy sunrays, lightsails imparted with ultra harsh laser pulses can be badly damaged.

How to build a durable lightsail

According to the researchers, strong laser pulses could create pressure forceful enough to curve and tear the sheet like a taut boat sail may rip if hit by a giant gust of wind.

They believe lightsails must have the ability to “billow” and form a curved shape kind of like a parachute. Both the sail’s length and the radius of curvature, Bargatin explains, should be about 3 meters. In their new papers, the authors outline geometric measurements that ensure optimal billowing.

Even a lightsail protected from tears, however, will encounter other obstacles. To overcome such issues, the major parameter to consider is sail material. The sheets must be strong for durability, lightweight to minimize laser strength, reflect light efficiently for ideal propulsion and shed heat generated from laser pulses.

If the latter bit isn’t taken care of, Bargatin says, the sail could literally melt in space.

“You can come up with a combination of materials. The thicknesses of those materials and curved geometries would allow the sail to survive the pressures that we’re currently designing for,” Bargatin said, noting his team is mostly looking at a material called molybdenum disulfide.

In the grand scheme of things, though, building the massive laser array that’ll beam lightsails forward will be a big hurdle. Researchers working in space-based communication, Bargatin says, are also still figuring out how to retrieve information from the microchip probe attached to the lightsail.

If Breakthrough Starshot’s mechanism works one day, it’ll be a true testament to humanity’s brilliance in the field of science. In an announcement of the organization’s immense goals six years ago, Hawking stated:

“I believe what makes us unique is transcending our limits. Gravity pins us to the ground, but I just flew to America. I lost my voice, but I can still speak, thanks to my voice synthesizer. How do we transcend these limits?

“With our minds and our machines.”

Technologies

Trump Maintains US‑Iran Negotiations Continue Amid Tehran’s Denials of Duplicity

President Trump insists that US‑Iran talks are ongoing despite Tehran’s denial of any negotiation plans, while warning that only a deal or total surrender will allow passage through the Strait of Hormuz. Conflicting statements from both sides have heightened uncertainty as the conflict enters its sixth month.

On Monday, President Donald Trump asserted that negotiations between the United States and Iran are still taking place, even after Tehran stated it has no intention of engaging in direct talks with Washington.

In a fiery Truth Social post, Trump labeled Iran’s leaders “unbelievably duplicitous,” claiming they are lying about ongoing peace talks “whether Iran wants to admit it or not.” He repeated his assertion that the United States completely controls the Strait of Hormuz, despite maritime traffic through the crucial route lingering at only a small fraction of pre‑conflict levels.

He wrote, “Nothing reaches Iran unless we allow it, and nothing will pass unless a deal—or total surrender—is achieved.”

Earlier that day, Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Esmail Baghaei told reporters there is no imminent plan for U.S.–Iran negotiations, contradicting Trump’s earlier comment that talks would resume Monday afternoon. Baghaei added that Iran’s only current discussions are with Oman concerning the Strait of Hormuz.

The conflicting statements have heightened uncertainty over the peace‑talk process and the broader conflict, now in its sixth month.

Trump’s assertion about new negotiations came a day after he said on Truth Social that he had agreed to cancel a massive strike against Iran “subject to being able to rapidly make a DEAL.” He said in the same post that Iran and other Middle Eastern countries had asked him to hold off on that attack because “the perimeters of a deal has been agreed to.”

Trump has claimed dozens of times throughout the more‑than‑five‑month‑long war that a deal is at hand. No permanent deal has been signed, and a temporary ceasefire reached in June has fallen apart.

Trump has also repeatedly threatened to launch devastating strikes against Iran before backing off. After the latest example, oil prices on Monday fell and stocks surged.

BMI, a research unit of Fitch Solutions, said in a note Monday that a broader diplomatic understanding on reopening the Strait of Hormuz is still achievable this quarter, while raising the probability of its escalation scenario to 35% from 25%, citing mounting military, diplomatic and economic signs of rising U.S.-Iran tensions.

“Diplomatic progress is likely to be punctuated by periodic military flare-ups, while miscalculation by either side could trigger a renewed escalation,” BMI analysts wrote in a note. The firm said the key issue to watch is the future governance of the strait, as the Iran-Oman talks — potentially backed by Gulf states, China and the U.S. — point to efforts to build a post-conflict shipping framework.

Shipping risks persist even as diplomacy appears to be advancing. The United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations Centre said it received a report of an incident 20 nautical miles (23 miles) northeast of Khasab, Oman — at the mouth of the strait — with a tanker’s master reporting an explosion in close proximity to the vessel at about 20:37 UTC Sunday (4:37 pm ET). The vessel and crew were safe and authorities are investigating, UKMTO said, advising ships to transit with caution.

The proposal Trump announced over the weekend calls for the U.S. and Iran to return to negotiations and continue ironing out some of the thorny issues that had derailed diplomatic efforts, according to The Associated Press, citing a regional official involved in the mediation efforts.

The official said the proposal also includes a reopening of the Hormuz Strait and halting attacks across the region, including by Iranian-backed militias in Iraq on the Arab Gulf countries and Jordan.

The U.S., for its part, will end its naval blockade on Iran and allow Tehran to export its oil, the official said, adding that no deal has been reached, although the mediation efforts remained underway.

Trump’s weekend reversal has lowered the temperature after days of escalating attacks across the Gulf. Kuwait said Saturday that Iranian forces launched a wave of drones within its airspace, with its military destroying multiple aircraft after Iran targeted critical infrastructure in the country’s north.

A parallel track with Muscat is also advancing. Iranian diplomats said Tehran was close to reaching a new arrangement with Oman to manage shipping through the Strait of Hormuz, a deal critical to preventing the war from escalating further, according to the Financial Times.

Iranian officials said negotiations over future management of the Hormuz Strait with Oman, which sits on the opposite shore of the waterway, are in their final stages. The agreed shipping route would be different from those used before, according to Iran’s Foreign Ministry spokesperson, Baghaei, adding that the new route was separate from the issue of the strait’s reopening or continued closure.

Technologies

Oil Prices Slide as Trump Halts Planned Iran Strike

Oil prices dropped after Trump cancelled a planned strike on Iran, with WTI down about 5% and Brent near 5% lower. He said the move followed requests from Tehran and regional allies for a pause while a deal shaping the Strait of Hormuz and Iran’s nuclear program is negotiated.

Oil prices fell on Monday after President Donald Trump announced he had cancelled a planned strike on Iran. WTI futures dropped roughly 5% to $80.34 a barrel, while Brent slipped about 4.7% to $83.77 a barrel.

Trump said early Sunday he called off the strike after Iran and several Middle Eastern nations asked him to hold off, noting that the outlines of a deal had been agreed upon. He added that the prospective accord would entail the immediate, full opening of the Strait of Hormuz and an end to Iran’s nuclear ambitions, according to his Truth Social post.

The president had been considering another round of strikes as diplomatic hopes waned since the conflict began on February 28. He said the U.S. and Iran would meet for talks on Monday, but Iran denied any scheduled negotiations with Washington, citing PressTV. Iran’s foreign‑ministry spokesperson Esmaeil Baghaei clarified that Tehran was only discussing shipping routes through the Strait of Hormuz with Oman. In a follow‑up Truth Social message, Trump insisted that, regardless of Iran’s acknowledgment, the United States is indeed discussing a solution to a long‑standing problem created by Iran.

Technologies

Oil Prices Drop as Trump Cancels Planned Attack on Iran

Oil prices fell sharply after President Trump announced the cancellation of a planned strike on Iran, citing a new deal that would open the Hormuz Strait and end Iran’s nuclear threat.

Oil prices fell sharply on Monday after President Donald Trump announced that he had called off a planned strike on Iran.

West Texas Intermediate futures, the U.S. benchmark, slipped roughly 5% to close at $80.34 per barrel, while Brent crude, the international benchmark, declined 4.7% to settle at $83.77 a barrel.

Trump made the announcement early Sunday, saying he had canceled the strike following requests from Tehran and other Middle Eastern countries.

In a Truth Social post, he wrote: “We have just been asked by Iran, and other Middle Eastern Countries, to hold off any attack in that the perimeters of a deal has been agreed to.”

The president indicated that the proposed agreement would include the immediate, complete, and total opening of the Hormuz Strait, as well as an end to Iran’s nuclear threat.

Trump had been weighing additional strikes amid diminishing prospects for a diplomatic resolution to the conflict that began on Feb. 28. He stated that the U.S. and Iran would hold negotiations on Monday.

Tehran denied that talks were planned with Washington, according to state news outlet PressTV.

Iran’s Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baghaei said Tehran was only holding talks with Oman regarding the routes ships can use through the Strait of Hormuz.

In a subsequent Truth Social post, Trump added that whether “Iran wants to admit it or not, we are, in fact, talking of a solution to a problem that they have caused for decades.”