by Paul Gilster | Jun 28, 2006 | Tau Zero Foundation |
by Marc Millis
Welcome to the birth of a new foundation. Using the dream of reaching other worlds as a long-range goal and a catalyst for near-term progress, the Tau Zero Foundation supports incremental advancements in science, technology, and education. As a private nonprofit (501c3) corporation, supported mainly through philanthropic donations, the Foundation seeks out and directs support to the best practitioners who can make credible progress toward this incredible goal and educate the public during this journey of discovery.
WHY
The enormous benefits of practical interstellar flight should be obvious. Not only would this free humanity from having just one safe haven, Earth, but the technological spin-offs would be profound. Imagine the consequences, where breakthroughs in transportation, energy conversion, and sustainable habitats would be realized on Earth as well as for expanding human presence beyond Earth. These technologies could answer a wide range of human needs.
Presently however, some of the world’s most reputable thinkers deem practical interstellar flight to be impossible, and they might very well be right. Conceding defeat, however, does not inspire progress. Even if the ultimate challenges are impossible, there is value in the attempt. Aiming for impossible goals forces thinking beyond mere extrapolation of existing achievements. It presents a provocative challenge to spur discoveries that others aren’t even looking for. It provides a different perspective from which to ponder the lingering mysteries of science. It gives an inspirational theme around which to educate the public about the opportunities and methods of reasoned discovery. And culturally, it helps remind us that we share a common humanity, temporarily stranded together on our one small planet Earth, to encourage us to behave more responsibly. Finally, given the indefinitely long time scales of interstellar flight, it gives us a role model for breaking away from the trappings of instant gratification.
WHAT
The Tau Zero Foundation will establish itself as the dependable venue through which the visionary goals of interstellar flight can be advanced through imagination coupled with intellectual rigor. The allure of undiscovered breakthroughs will be used to inspire and educate the public, and in turn, these educational ventures will promote the Foundation. To advance science and technology, the Foundation will channel financial support to credible risk-takers within legitimate establishments, selected largely through competitive processes. To stay poised for capitalizing on ancillary benefits, the most promising developments will be aimed toward revenue-generating products and services.
Although academia advances the underlying science and technology, it seldom risks exploring the highly speculative ideas of interstellar flight. Even though various organizations advance space exploration, these typically cater to near-term challenges. While science fiction inspires, it is conveyed as entertainment rather than for deliberately provoking progress. And finally, although there are Internet groups touting spaceflight breakthroughs, these lack credibility and correspondingly degrade the overall legitimacy of the pursuit.
Regarding the philanthropic model, there are precedents. Both the SETI Institute (Search for Extraterrestrial Intelligence) and Biosphere obtained considerably more funds through philanthropy than from the expected sponsor – government. In fact, SETI, a canceled NASA project, has been faring better since it became independent. Furthermore, there is evidence of a cultural change underway with regard to space exploration. Wealthy individuals such as Paul Allen, Sir Richard Branson, Jeff Bezos and Elon Musk are supporting their own space ventures. While they focus on near-term gains, this Foundation provides a reliable outlet through which wealthy individuals can support the far-future quests as well.
WHO
The creative driving force behind this effort is Marc G. Millis, who co-founded “Vision-21” within Lewis Research Center (1990-1994), served as an advisor and editor for the Interstellar Propulsion Society (1995), and founded and led NASA’s Breakthrough Propulsion Physics Project (1996-2002). This Project looked at such controversial topics as gravity control, space drives, faster-than-light travel, and vacuum energy, and did so in a credible and efficient manner. For a total investment of less than $1.6M spread over 7 years, this project produced 14 peer-reviewed journal articles, addressed 8 different research approaches, posted an award winning web site, and garnered over 100 positive press articles for NASA. As a normal part of his operating strategy, Millis routinely pursues collaborations wherever possible. Such a strategy and the established network of collaborators will make for a more efficient and effective Foundation.
The following accomplished scientists, engineers, and journalists have already committed to contributing their talents. As the scout for the nearer-term interstellar options, Gregory Matloff, of the New York City College of Technology and a Hayden Fellow at the American Museum of Natural History, will be participating. Matloff co-authored the seminal book The Starflight Handbook (1989) followed by Deep Space Probes (2nd ed. 2005) and consults for NASA and others on the technologies for interstellar probes. An antimatter and nuclear propulsion expert is Steven Howe, Director of the Center for Space Nuclear Studies in Idaho Falls. Another propulsion expert is Martin Tajmar, author of Advanced Space Propulsion Systems (2003) and Head of Space Propulsion research for ARC Seibersdorf Research in Austria. The lead journalist for the Foundation is Paul Gilster, who recently published an overview of interstellar ambitions, Centauri Dreams (2004), and who continues to post interstellar news on his Centauri Dreams website.
Dana Andrews (Andrews Space, Inc.) brings to the Foundation expertise on space sails and numerous contributions in aerospace engineering. Geoffrey Landis (NASA GRC) is a physicist and science fiction writer with extensive background in interstellar issues. Space scientist Claudio Maccone (Alenia Spazio) has long championed interstellar studies and is the creative force behind FOCAL, a mission concept to reach the Sun’s gravity lens. Both Jean-Luc Cambier (Propulsion Directorate, Edwards Air Force Base) and Brice Cassenti (Pratt & Whitney) are experts in advanced space propulsion, while Eric Davis (Institute for Advanced Studies, Austin) brings expertise in exotic concepts like the warp drive. Physicist Bill Harter (University of Arkansas) is a specialist in special relativity and wave mechanics.
Other names key to the foundation’s success include antimatter specialist Gerald Jackson (Hbar Technologies); physicist Jordin Kare (Kare Consulting); Frank Mead (Propulsion Directorate, Edwards Air Force Base); astronautical engineering consultant Gerald Nordley; aerospace engineer Mike LaPointe (NASA MSFC); physicists Ed Zampino (NASA GRC) and Bill Meyer (GRC and Scattering Solutions LLC); physicist Jordan Maclay (Quantum Fields, LLC); Lt. Col. Tim Lawrence (US Air Force Academy); engineer Sonny White (NASA Johnson Space Center) and information technologist Jon Hujsak (Neotopica Inc.).
The Foundation also draws upon the work of graphic artist and journalist Alexandre Szames, along with journalists Ian Brown, Larry Klaes and Leonard David, to bring its work to the public. For fundraising and entrepreneurial guidance, Walter de Brouwer is participating. Founder of more that 40 companies including 2 international IPO’s, Time and CNN dubbed him a ‘serial entrepreneur.’ Walter also served on the program board of MIT’s Media Lab, but his most applicable adventure was Starlab, which brought together accomplished risk-takers from a variety of disciplines to collaborate on problems of infinite horizons. Legal council is provided by Frank Nagorney, a specialist in small business and a principal of Cowden Humphrey Nagorney & Lovett Co.
CLOSING
Much of the groundwork is already being set. Some research and outreach is already happening in small fragments scattered across the world, albeit to a very limited degree. But is this enough? On something as important as giving humanity a future beyond the bounds of Earth, shouldn’t we be doing more? By using the daunting challenge of a seemingly impossible goal, we could very well discover what mundane researchers will overlook. And what if the impossible is possible? If so, it is certain to happen sooner than the pessimists believe. That is the way of pessimists. The Tau Zero Foundation is being established to support a network of rational visionaries who are willing to tackle the impossible and produce value along the way. When our Web site is ready and we are ready to accept general memberships, we hope you will join us and support this work. We all have a common goal: To give humanity a future worth working toward.
by Paul Gilster | Jun 26, 2006 | Tau Zero Foundation |
Last February, Centauri Dreams described the formation of a new foundation, a private nonprofit (501c3) corporation dedicated to supporting the advances in science, technology and education that may one day enable us to reach the stars. Conceived by Marc Millis, former head of NASA’s Breakthrough Propulsion Physics program, the foundation aims to support a carefully chosen group of researchers whose work is directed at this goal. On that occasion, I described the fledgling foundation’s need for a name and asked for comments from readers. Now that the choice has been made and the necessary legal work accomplished, it’s time to announce the advent of the Tau Zero Foundation.
Inspired by the Poul Anderson novel of the same name and seconded by a number of readers, Tau Zero seemed a natural fit. Tau refers to the Greek letter representing proper time in relativistic equations. Tau Zero refers to what happens when one approaches light-speed and one’s proper time shrinks compared to the surrounding universe. Thus the premise of the Anderson novel, as an interstellar craft unable to stop accelerating takes an inadvertent grand tour of the cosmos. Anderson, who passed away in 2001, remains highly regarded as a science fiction writer whose work reflects sound and thoughtful science. He wrote often of interstellar flight and is believed to have inspired many students to become scientists and engineers. In February 2006, his widow, Karen Anderson, granted permission for the Foundation to use this name as well as joining the Foundation as one of its advocates herself.
Centauri Dreams‘ next post will be a statement by foundation founder Marc Millis discussing the goals and composition of the organization. An older background statement with more detail about the group’s structure is available, and all these documents will be be updated when the foundation’s Web site becomes operational. The Tau Zero Foundation is still in its infancy, but Centauri Dreams will continue to report on its growth and progress as events warrant. And as the foundation grows, this site will grow with it, continuing to report on developments in interstellar science that may bring the grand goal just a little closer.
A final thought: the motto of the foundation is ad astra incrementis. The Latin word incrementis is the root of English ‘incremental,’ a fitting thought given the nature of the challenge. Translated literally, ad astra incrementis means ‘to the stars in steps, with each step larger than the last.’ Going to the stars is not likely to be the result of a single breakthrough, but rather thousands of small, incremental discoveries that build upon each other.
The goal of the Tau Zero Foundation is to ensure that those early steps are taken now, so that some day people working with technologies far more advanced than our own may complete the work of reaching nearby stars and giving humanity the means to thrive beyond Earth. If that is a future most of us may never live to see, it is enough to know that we played some role in bringing it about.
by Paul Gilster | Feb 15, 2006 | Tau Zero Foundation |
by Ian Brown
Centauri Dreams’ discussions of a foundation to support research into interstellar flight caught the eye of Edinburgh-based science writer Ian Brown. As far as I know, the article that resulted is the first appearance of the new foundation in the mainstream media, and it is reprinted here with the permission of its author and The Scotsman, where it ran on February 4 of this year. Brown discusses the background and thinking behind the still unnamed foundation with Marc Millis, the group’s founding architect. We are very close to a final decision on the name, incidentally; Centauri Dreams will post that news as soon as it is finalized.
The staggering claims submitted in a scientific paper last month (see The Scotsman, January 5th) that we might be able to travel to alien star-systems in months rather than millennia were sensational enough to make the cover of New Scientist magazine.
Don’t plan that trip to Alpha Centauri just yet, though. The ‘hyperdrive’ – which would allow a spacecraft to take a shortcut through an extra dimension of space-time – is based on dauntingly abstruse equations by the late Burkhard Heim. A reclusive German physicist, Heim reads like a character out of Metropolis. Badly disabled in a laboratory accident in his teens, he first mooted the hyperdrive concept in 1957 but lapsed quickly back into obscurity (he died virtually forgotten in 2001). Bemused scientists reviewing the paper’s claims already complain they find much of his work incomprehensible.
But the hyperdrive has at least propelled the tantalising possibility of interstellar (as opposed to mere interplanetary) travel back into the headlines. Could we ever actually bridge the insane distances to the stars within human lifetimes?
NASA scientist Marc Millis, founder and former manager of the agency’s now defunct Breakthrough Physics Propulsion Project (BPPP), remains cautious. “The hyperdrive approach is in such an early stage of development that it is premature to judge its viability,” he warns. “Fortunately, relatively low-cost next steps could be taken by its proponents to help assess the prospects, such as confirming the ability of the Heim theory to predict the masses of sub-atomic particles, and showing the derivations and equations necessary to comprehend the other assertions.
“But it is important to remember that there are many other approaches out there,” he adds. “The best way to determine which of these might merit support is to conduct a competitive research solicitation.”
Millis established the BPPP in 1996 to do just that – act as a clearing house for research into identifying what future technologies just might one day make interstellar journeys possible. But three years ago NASA shelved it to focus its travel plans nearer to home (the Moon by 2018, Mars by 2050). Undaunted, Millis, and a network of collaborators he has built up, aim to launch a separate not-for-profit foundation this year to continue to promote such research.
“Interstellar flight broaches the possibility of finding another place on which to live so that our survival is not limited to one pale-blue dot in the cosmos,” explains Millis. “That has so many profound implications.”
Not least among them is the sheer enormity of what that challenge entails. Even light, travelling at 186,000 miles a second, takes over four years to reach just the nearest star to our own Sun. The Voyager space-probe, the fastest man-made object ever built, would take over 80,000 years to get there. No wonder many scientists think interstellar travel is a goal far too far.
“When it comes to travelling faster than light the challenge is indeed daunting,” agrees Millis. “There is plenty of physics to suggest that this is impossible, and the theories that challenge this limit all evoke time travel paradoxes. On the other hand, when it comes to the goal of a ‘space drive’ – a non-rocket breakthrough – there is no physics to say that it is impossible, but conversely, no proven physics yet to suggest how to achieve it.”
That’s where the proposed new foundation comes in. It will create a network of researchers amongst academia, industry, the military and government to explore the most promising candidate technologies. They will share information, review and critically assess each other’s work. “The immediate core already spans Belgium, Italy, Austria as well as the US,” Millis says. “I have not yet tapped into the deeper network of interstellar practitioners out there, including some in the UK.
“We won’t be able to offer research grants, however, until after we secure substantial philanthropic donations. So far we have one financial benefactor who is taking care of our start-up costs in addition to all the volunteer help from my network of professionals. We don’t yet have a sales-pitch document to seek serious funding. But the SETI (Search for Extra-Terrestrial Intelligence) institute is one model I’ve looked at.”
Possible names for the foundation include the Interstellar Propulsion Foundation, the Deep Future Foundation, the Centauri Foundation and the Blue-Shift Foundation. “One thing that we have adopted,” Millis says, “is the sub-title ad astra incrementis, which means ‘to the stars in steps, where each is larger than before’.”
Millis joined NASA in 1982. His earliest publication on interstellar propulsion was in 1990. “From there I started to encounter other like-minded researchers. That was the start of the group that led to this foundation.”
So what are the most promising candidates to propel Earth’s first starship? They range from near-term technology – light-sails, anti-matter, ion engines – to the seemingly fantastic -warping space-time (or ‘metric engineering’ in the new buzz-word) or tunnelling through wormholes. All are up for serious consideration.
“All of the options, even those based on technology we could launch today, have pros and cons,” Millis emphasises. “If the emphasis is on ‘cheap’ and ‘launch now’, with little regard for how long an interstellar probe will take to reach its destination, the clear winner is some form of solar-sail. If shorter missions or larger payloads are desired, the choices become more difficult. From here it breaks down into two branches; emerging technology, and undiscovered physics.
“The challenge with the emerging technology, which builds on known physics, is the ‘incessant obsolescence postulate’. This states that no matter when an interstellar probe is launched, it will be passed by a more modern probe launched later. The question then isn’t so much ‘can we’ but what are the most important design factors to work toward: cheap, available now, quickest trip, size of payload, etc?
“When it comes to undiscovered physics, where the intent is to circumvent all our current technological limits with faster-than-light breakthroughs, the question isn’t so much which is better but rather what are the next steps that we need to take to sort through all these crazy ideas? The point is to figure out the most reasonable next steps that we can actually afford and then have the best practitioners explore them and share the lessons.”
Does he think in his gut we’ll ever be able to reach across the light years to other solar systems? “I am certain that a dedicated interstellar probe will one day be launched,” he says. “I’m not sure when or by whom, but it is inevitable if humanity sustains some degree of vision about its future. But even if the desired breakthroughs turn out to be impossible, we will at least add to scientific and technical progress.
“What I am absolutely certain about is that we stand far more to gain in the attempt than to give up without trying. Discovering the means to allow humanity to live beyond Earth deals with our very survival and destiny as a species. It is not a trivial, discretionary issue. It would be socially irresponsible not to be asking such questions.”
For news about the foundation’s progress, visit www.centauri-dreams.org
For a further outline of the challenges involved in interstellar propulsion, visit www.nasa.gov/centers/glenn/research/warp/warp.html
by Paul Gilster | Feb 3, 2006 | Tau Zero Foundation |
Long-time Centauri Dreams readers know that I’ve written repeatedly about a non-profit foundation to support research into interstellar flight. The groundwork for this foundation, as you will see below, dates back over a decade. It is now time to get busy with practicalities, the first of which is the choice of a name.
In 1993, a father and son team, Ed and Jon Hujsak, tracked down the leading researchers on advanced space propulsion and together they founded the “Interstellar Propulsion Society.” Some of its 15 advisors included Robert Forward, Greg Matloff, Tony Martin, Geoff Landis, Bob Zubrin, Dana Andrews, and Marc Millis. With the Internet and digital libraries now available to facilitate collaboration, this grass-roots society aimed to “accelerate scientific and engineering advancement in space propulsion, leading to manned missions to other star system at fractional light speeds, relativistic velocities and beyond.”
But the Interstellar Propulsion Society was short-lived. Right after its first newsletter appeared in July of 1995, NASA began sponsoring its own interstellar work, including the Breakthrough Propulsion Physics Project, led by Marc Millis (NASA GRC); the Advanced Space Transportation Research Program, led by John Cole (NASA MSFC); and studies that led to numerous nearer-term concepts such as the 2000 Interstellar Precursor Mission, proposed by R. A. Wewaldt and P. C. Liewer (Caltech and NASA JPL).
Around 2000, when the Advanced Space Transportation Program (ASTP) implemented more disciplined terminology, the Breakthrough Propulsion Physics (BPP) Program became the BPP Project (in NASA terminology, Projects are subsets of Programs and BPP was a subset of the ASTP).
It seemed that the need for the grass-roots society had been supplanted with funded government research. The society’s founders and advisors let their organization fade away.
About 7 years later, however, these visionary NASA activities also ended. Quoting Michael Braukus, a public affairs officer from NASA Headquarters (July 11, 2003): “The Breakthrough Propulsion Physics Project has been discontinued consistent with the reformulation of the SLI [Space Launch Initiative] and a reassessment of the Integrated Space Transportation (ISTP) budget priorities.” A slightly different explanation comes from the 2003 Federal budget (p.325): “Finally, the Congress earmarked funds for a low priority propulsion lab by cutting the very research the lab is meant to support.”
Just prior to the NASA cuts, Marc Millis (whose first published work on these topics appeared in 1990) began to shift the Breakthrough Propulsion Physics work to a consortium of government, industry and academia. From managing what is arguably the most visionary NASA project, Millis learned that such edgy research needs more rounded participation [NASA NASA/TM–2004-213406]. Although the funding cuts halted this transformation, the idea that such visionary research should resume and include facets beyond what the government could address was clear. Millis’s brief experiences with Walter De Brouwer’s Starlab in 2001 also gave him new insights into entrepreneurial adventures.
In 2003 and with NASA’s support, Millis returned to school to pursue a Masters in Physics Entrepreneurship at Case Western Reserve University. As a school project, Millis wrote a business plan for an “Interstellar Flight Foundation” that one of his management consultants took seriously enough to incorporate in 2004, before Millis finished securing NASA’s permission to work this Foundation on his own time, outside of NASA. But as implementation details progressed, the consultant and Millis’s team differed on how things should be run. The consultant has gone on to pursue his own version of an “Interstellar Flight Foundation,” while Millis and his team continue setting up their original Foundation.
With the help of Paul Gilster (who provides our temporary Internet outlet), we are now seeking a little help from YOU to get us officially started. WE NEED A NEW NAME. Although we’ve settled on an acceptable subtitle, specifically, “Ad Astra Incrementis” (which literally means: “to the stars in steps, where each is larger than before”), renaming the Foundation has been a struggle. “Interstellar Flight Foundation” was quite appropriate, but now we must pick something sufficiently different to avoid confusion with the offshoot version, yet still relevant.
Many other fitting names have already been taken, making choices narrow. Some of the names that we’ve been toying with include:
Interstellar Propulsion Foundation
Deep Future Foundation
Centauri Foundation
Blue-Shift Foundation (double meaning; Doppler and ‘shifting to a new pale blue dot’)
SEARCH Foundation (Science, Engineering, & Astronautical Research for a Cosmic Humanity)
Stardrive Foundation
Tau Zero Foundation (inspired by the Poul Anderson novel of the same name)
Long Result Foundation (plays off a line from Tennyson, referring to ‘the long result of time’)
Practical Starflight Foundation
We hope you will give us your feedback on which names you like and which you don’t (and feel free to propose still others). To do so, you may post a comment here on Centauri Dreams (free registration required), or if you prefer, contact Paul Gilster directly by e-mail. Choosing the best name is significant — names count! — and it marks what we hope will be the kickoff for getting this foundation into action later in 2006.
