Kelvin F. Long
Open Lecture - Wednesday 26th February at 6pm
The last century has seen the rise of Interstellar Studies, an inspirational new subject where people from all walks of life, including aerospace engineers, physicists, artists and science fiction writers, look with excitement towards the bold leap of reaching for the stars. This talk discusses the fundamental physics and extreme aerospace engineering requirements for embarking on the journey to other stars, addressing the feasibility of interstellar flight and the consequences for success or failure. Several case studies are examined for the future which are likely to need the input of not just engineers, but architects too, as we strive to become a multiple planet species, living off-world, on structures so enormous they dwarf any of the concepts currently conceived for Earth based projects.
Kelvin F. Long is a physicist, aerospace engineer, author and entrepreneur. He was the co-founder of the internationally acclaimed Project Icarus study and the subsequent US non-profit organization Icarus Interstellar for which he served as Vice President during its seminal year. He is also the founder and Managing Director of the UK Aerospace Company Stellar Engines Ltd. His latest effort is as the co-founder of the UK not-for-profit company The Initiative for Interstellar Studies, for which he serves as the Executive Director. He is a Fellow of The British Interplanetary Society and Chief Editor of its flagship Journal, JBIS, which is the oldest astronautical academic journal in the world. He is also a Candidate for Doctor of Philosophy in the subject of Laser Plasma Interactions and Inertial Confinement Fusion. He has published numerous articles and papers on various aspects of space travel and is the author of a book on interstellar flight published by Springer titled Deep Space Propulsion: A Roadmap to Interstellar Flight.
