I've been idly wondering if it's worth it to apply to YC next batch with the idea of launching dozens of 550AU missions for solar-gravitational-lens HD photographs of nearby exoplanets. I've been wondering a lot recently about our visibility to potential life out there; they may well be watching Earth in HD since we can imagine how we might do that too. So I think a great step would be launching a bunch of long missions that will eventually return us HD video of exoplanets within like 200 ly or more distant maybe. That will reveal a lot of info about close-by worlds and may produce copious evidence for life on other planets.
Would be very expensive, take a few decades at least, and the profit comes from...governments? Haha not sure about that yet. Might have to pitch it as a planetary defense company and also build tech to zap asteroids etc.
Basically, NASA is doing the great hard science obviously, but is outdone in pacing and tech by SpaceX and other startups; NASA plans to send 1-5? 550 AU missions eventually. But they're in no rush. I want to rush it.
Yeah it’ll take a lot of money for sure. Needs new propulsion like nuclear thermal or something to get to target distance in our lifetimes.
Would be very expensive but I think cheaper per mission, if you start off with a plan to send a lot of them.
Might take in full some tens or hundreds of billions. YC I am aware will not fund on that level haha, but maybe they would have an eye for wanting to start it off.
>Needs new propulsion like nuclear thermal or something to get to target distance in our lifetimes.
Here's a cool video describing solar sails that are supposed to be able to accelerate up to a final velocity of 22 AU/year, which get things to 550AU in 25 years.
Would be very expensive, take a few decades at least, and the profit comes from...governments? Haha not sure about that yet. Might have to pitch it as a planetary defense company and also build tech to zap asteroids etc.
Basically, NASA is doing the great hard science obviously, but is outdone in pacing and tech by SpaceX and other startups; NASA plans to send 1-5? 550 AU missions eventually. But they're in no rush. I want to rush it.