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Project Dragonfly (space study)
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<p>Project Dragonfly is the first conceptual design study that assesses the feasibility of a laser-propelled <a href="/facts/Interstellar_travel/fIIYxUKD">interstellar</a> <a href="/facts/Interstellar_probe/aBwqPryL">probe</a>, conducted by the <a href="/facts/Initiative_for_Interstellar_Studies/U4AIAYX9">Initiative for Interstellar Studies</a>. Contrary to past unmanned <a href="/facts/Interstellar_travel/fIIYxUKD">interstellar mission</a> studies such as <a href="/facts/Project_Daedalus/cWTC01HS">Project Daedalus</a> and <a href="/facts/Project_Icarus_(interstellar)/ogSomELe">Project Icarus</a>, the focus is particularly on a small spacecraft. The project was founded in 2013 by the <a href="/facts/Initiative_for_Interstellar_Studies/U4AIAYX9">Initiative for Interstellar Studies</a> (i4is). </p><p>A subsequent design competition was launched in 2014. The objective was to design a spacecraft that is capable of reaching <a href="/facts/Alpha_Centauri/6BlySfIj">Alpha Centauri</a> within 100 years using existing or near-term technologies and a beam power below 100 GW. Four teams presented their designs at the final workshop at the British Interplanetary Society in London in July 2015. The teams consisted of students from <a href="/facts/Cairo_University/jD12YkVS">Cairo University</a>, <a href="/facts/Cranfield_University/Q6rsfoad">Cranfield University</a>, the <a href="/facts/Skolkovo_Institute_of_Science_and_Technology/nnxe3coP">Skolkovo Institute of Science and Technology</a>, <a href="/facts/Texas_A_and_M_University/s1zDpnxa">Texas A and M University</a>, <a href="/facts/Technical_University_of_Munich/14UXILEo">Technical University of Munich</a>, and <a href="/facts/University_of_California%2c_Santa_Barbara/G7UvBWlK">University of California, Santa Barbara</a>. The team of the <a href="/facts/WARR_(TUM)/NMT8gv88">WARR</a> of the <a href="/facts/Technical_University_of_Munich/14UXILEo">Technical University of Munich</a> won the competition. </p><p>The design of the <a href="/facts/University_of_California%2c_Santa_Barbara/G7UvBWlK">University of California, Santa Barbara</a> has subsequently evolved into the design for <a href="/facts/Breakthrough_Starshot/JhS31Lje">Breakthrough Starshot</a> of the <a href="/facts/Breakthrough_Initiatives/Vl9BrANF">Breakthrough Initiatives</a>. Results of the competition have subsequently been published in peer-reviewed journals. The competition has been accompanied by a <a href="/facts/Kickstarter/J1R5A3f6">Kickstarter</a> campaign that was supported by space artists such as <a href="/facts/David_A._Hardy/abSJuNAn">David A. Hardy</a>. </p>