Projects focused on designing spacecraft for interstellar travel are revealing some truly “mind-blowing” concepts that push the boundaries of current engineering and physics. These designs aren’t just about getting there, but about creating self-sustaining worlds that can transport humans across the vastness of space over generations.
A recent project, known as “Project Chrysalis” (a winner of a design competition), presented a concept for a multi-generational starship. The design features a central core surrounded by two counter-rotating rings to provide artificial gravity, which is essential for human health on such a long journey. The design also incorporates a “Direct Fusion Drive” propulsion system, using helium-3 and deuterium fuel to provide continuous, low-level acceleration. The project impressed judges with its attention to detail, including in-space manufacturing capabilities and a plan for crew training in environments like Antarctica to prepare them for the psychological and physical isolation of the mission.
Another approach, exemplified by concepts like the Enzmann Starship, focuses on massive, cylindrical vessels. These designs often propose a large, hollowed-out asteroid core containing rotating habitats, similar to the Stanford Torus concept, to generate gravity.
Interstellar travel concepts generally fall into two main categories:

• Direct-Energy Propulsion: These designs focus on using powerful energy sources, like massive laser arrays, to accelerate small, unmanned probes with “lightsails” to a fraction of the speed of light. The Breakthrough Starshot project is a prime example of this approach, aiming to send gram-scale probes to Proxima Centauri. While this method is currently the only one considered feasible for interstellar travel within a human lifetime, it’s not yet viable for “shipping humans.”
• Generation Ships: For human travel, the most plausible concepts are generational starships. These are enormous vessels designed to be self-sufficient for centuries, with closed-loop ecosystems that recycle air, water, and waste, and facilities for growing food. The crew would live out their lives on the ship, with their descendants continuing the journey to the target star. These designs require a breakthrough in propulsion technology, such as advanced fusion rockets or other speculative drives, to achieve sufficient speeds.
  These projects highlight the immense challenges of interstellar travel, including the need for new propulsion systems that don’t rely on massive amounts of propellant, a way to generate artificial gravity, and a deep understanding of human physiology and psychology for long-duration missions. While still theoretical, these “mind-blowing” designs are a crucial step in laying the groundwork for a future where humanity can venture beyond our solar system.

Project Hyperion

On November 1st, 2024, Project Hyperion – an international, interdisciplinary team of architects, engineers, anthropologists, and urban planners – launched a design competition for crewed interstellar travel

The event was hosted by the Initiative for Interstellar Studies (i4is), a UK-based non-profit organization dedicated to the robotic and human exploration of exoplanets around nearby stars, and eventually settlement. With a prize purse of $10,000, competitors were tasked with producing concepts for a Generation Ship(aka. worldships) using current technologies and those that could be realized in the near future.

On 23 July, 2025, the organization announced the top three competition winners, which were selected from hundreds of ideas submitted by teams worldwide. The winning entries were selected based on how they met all the competition criteria, provided a depth of detail, and integrated the design aspects of architecture, engineering, and social sciences.

In short, the top three prizes were awarded to proposals that would allow a society to sustain itself and flourish in a highly resource-constrained environment as they made a centuries-long journey to another habitable planet.

The challenges and hazards of space exploration are well-known and well-documented, ranging from long-duration transits, exposure to radiation, the amount of supplies needed, and the dangers of being cooped up inside a pressurized ship in close quarters with other crew members.

Generation ships

As we addressed in a previous post, it would take 1,000 to 81,000 years to reach the nearest star (Alpha Centauri) using current or technologically-feasible propulsion methods.

At present, the only method for travelling from one star system to the next within a human lifetime is directed-energy propulsion, where gram-scale watercraft equipped with lightsails are accelerated by laser arrays to relativistic speeds (a fraction of the speed of light). Proposed concepts include Breakthrough Starshotand Swarming Proxima Centauri, both of which grew from Project Dragonfly, a feasibility study conducted by i4is in 2015

The chrysalis team and project

The Chrysalis project is a winning design concept for a multi-generational starship, created as part of a global design challenge. Here’s a breakdown of the team and the key aspects of their project:
The Team:
The Chrysalis team, hailing from Italy, is an interdisciplinary group of professionals who brought a range of expertise to the project. The team members include:

• Giacomo Infelise: An architect and landscape designer, likely responsible for the ship’s habitat and living spaces.
• Veronica Magli: An economic scientist and innovator, who probably contributed to the long-term economic and social viability of the starship.
• Guido Sbrogio: An astrophysicist and engineer, who would have handled the technical and propulsion aspects of the design.
• Nevenka Martinello: An environmental engineer and freelance artist, bringing expertise in life support systems and visual design.
• Federica Chiara Serpe: A psychologist, whose role would be crucial in addressing the psychosocial challenges of a multi-generational mission.
  The Project:
  The team’s design for “Chrysalis” won first place in a competition organized by the UK-based Initiative for Interstellar Studies. The challenge was to create a self-sustaining generation ship for 500-1500 people on a centuries-long journey to the exoplanet Proxima b, located about 4.25 light-years from Earth.
  Key features of the Chrysalis design include:
• Modular Cylindrical Structure: The ship is a massive 58-kilometer cylindrical structure with a modular design. This allows for a minimal frontal section, reducing the risk of collisions with micrometeoroids and orbital debris (MMOD) and also minimizing structural stress during acceleration and deceleration.
• Artificial Gravity: The design incorporates concentric rotating shells to simulate gravity, a vital element for the long-term health and well-being of the crew.
• Direct Fusion Drive: The propulsion system is a “Direct Fusion Drive,” which would use helium-3 and deuterium fuel to provide the continuous, low-level acceleration needed for such a long journey.
• System-Level Coherence and Detail: The judges were particularly impressed by the design’s overall coherence and the depth of its detail. This included plans for in-space manufacturing, which is essential for a self-sufficient journey, as well as a plan for pre-mission crew preparation in Antarctica to simulate the psychological and physical isolation of the mission.
• The “Cosmo Dome”: One of the innovative architectural features is the “Cosmo Dome” at the front of the ship, which would serve as a low-gravity lounge, offering the crew a view of space.
  The Chrysalis project stands out for its comprehensive approach, integrating not only the engineering challenges of interstellar travel but also the crucial human factors and societal dimensions that would be necessary for a multi-generational mission to succeed.

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