Within our milkyway, the nearest star to the solar system is Alpha Centauri with 4.35 light years distance. In the deep space exploration, objectives of mankind are to reach nearest star to study its environment and explore other habitable exoplanets. In this paper, we will try to demonstrate with calculations, the most probable way of achieving these objectives. In the end, the humanity has nowhere to go but to the stars. In addition, this paper will treat some advanced but hypothetical forms of interstellar travel by the utilization of space curvature to some extent. This paper will examine the most probable possibilities regarding interstellar travel based upon the available science and technology that we have today. In addition, combination of antimatter propulsion as well as fusion propulsion can be combined to give even a higher specific impulse, as well as an ability to meet power demands for decades, which will be necessary for travelling even at those high speeds. Continued acceleration will be a key to success in such an endeavor and more importantly, with advanced nuclear propulsion, it can be possible to meet the necessary power requirements for the mission. With current technology, using advanced nuclear propulsion techniques seem to be the best way, as they possess the ability to create high specific impulses in a short period of time. Thus, more exotic means of space transport conditions need to be realized in order to make interstellar travel a reality. In terms of specific impulse, conventional methods are totally useless for any distances that are outside our solar system. Thus, the modes of transportation for interstellar distances need to be considered now, so that the necessary technology can be developed correspondingly. Even though this may seem to be a dream at this point, the continuing trend in the technology suggests that this will be possible in the next century or towards the end of the 21st century. As space technology develops and as the future of humanity demands more and more the only way that the humanity can expand would be toward the stars. With 2012, Voyager will be the first manmade object to exit our Solar System for the first time. Our present space technology has just put its first step outside our heliopause. This paper is a submission of the Project Icarus Study Group. This paper has been written to facilitate further discussion within the team to advance the concept to a more credible proposal. We also present the basic concept for the Icarus Starfinder Probe (ISP). Such a mission presents many opportunities for determining the key technologies required to develop along the interstellar roadmap to the nearby stars. We introduce the Icarus Pathfinder Probe (IPP), a mission to 1000 AU requiring an average cruise velocity of between 50-100 AU/year. In order to launch such a mission it is useful to consider what sort of interstellar precursor missions that would test key technologies of a scaled down Icarus probe. Given current predictions such propulsion is decades away if not more. Because the performance of such a probe in the timescales required by Project Daedalus requires engines with a million seconds specific impulse, this implies technology such as fusion based propulsion, which is the choice for the Icarus reference design mission. It is a successor design study based upon the 1970s Project Daedalus conducted by members of The British Interplanetary Society. Project Icarus is a theoretical engineering design study to explore the possibilities of sending an unmanned interstellar probe to the nearest star systems.
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