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An interstellar ark is a conceptual starship designed for interstellar travel. Interstellar arks may be the most economically feasible method of traveling such distances.^{[citation needed]} The ark has also been proposed as a potential habitat to preserve civilization and knowledge in the event of a global catastrophe.

Such a ship would have to be large, requiring a large power plant. The Project Orion concept of propulsion by nuclear pulses has been proposed. The largest spacecraft design analyzed in Project Orion had a 400 m (1,300 ft) diameter and weighed approximately 8 million tons. It could be large enough to host a city of 100,000 or more people.

Thrust concepts

Another concern is selection of power sources and mechanisms which would remain viable for the long time spans involved in interstellar travel through the desert of space. The longest-lived space probes are the Voyager program probes, which use radioisotope thermoelectric generators having a useful lifespan of a mere 50 years.

One propulsion method for a crewed spacecraft could be a fusion microexplosion nuclear pulse propulsion system (like that proposed in Project Daedalus) that may allow it to obtain an interstellar cruising velocity of up to 10% of the speed of light. However, if the ship is capable of transits requiring hundreds of thousands of years, chemical and gravitational slingshot propulsion may be sufficient.^[1]^[2]

Specific proposals and research projects

The Enzmann starship proposed in 1964 is a large fusion-powered spacecraft that could function as an interstellar ark, supporting a crew of 200 with extra space for expansion, on multi-year journeys at subluminal speeds to nearby star systems.^[3]

In 1955 Project Orion considered nuclear propulsion for spacecraft, suitable for deep space voyages.

In 1973–1978 Project Daedalus was conducted by the British Interplanetary Society to study uncrewed interstellar spacecraft.

References

^ R.W. Moir and W.L. Barr (2005) "Analysis of Interstellar Spacecraft Cycling between the Sun and the Near Stars" Archived 2 November 2013 at the Wayback Machine Journal of the British Interplanetary Society 58, pp. 332–341
^ Frederik Ceyssens, Maarten Driesen, Kristof Wouters, Pieter-Jan Ceyssens, Lianggong Wen (2011) "Organizing and financing interstellar space projects – A bottom-up approach" Archived 7 April 2020 at the Wayback Machine (DARPA/NASA, Orlando, Florida: 100 Year Starship conference Archived 14 September 2012 at the Wayback Machine)
^ Ridpath, Ian (1978). Messages from the stars: communication and contact with extraterrestrial life. Harper & Row. ISBN 9780060135898. Archived from the original on 31 December 2013. As long ago as 1964, Robert D. Enzmann of the Raytheon Corporation proposed an interstellar ark driven by eight nuclear pulse rockets. The living quarters of the starship, habitable by 200 people but with room for growth ...

External links

[1] R.W. Moir and W.L. Barr (2005) "Analysis of Interstellar Spacecraft Cycling between the Sun and the Near Stars" Archived 2 November 2013 at the Wayback Machine Journal of the British Interplanetary Society 58, pp. 332–341

[2] Frederik Ceyssens, Maarten Driesen, Kristof Wouters, Pieter-Jan Ceyssens, Lianggong Wen (2011) "Organizing and financing interstellar space projects – A bottom-up approach" Archived 7 April 2020 at the Wayback Machine (DARPA/NASA, Orlando, Florida: 100 Year Starship conference Archived 14 September 2012 at the Wayback Machine)

[ridpath78-3] Ridpath, Ian (1978). Messages from the stars: communication and contact with extraterrestrial life. Harper & Row. ISBN 9780060135898. Archived from the original on 31 December 2013. As long ago as 1964, Robert D. Enzmann of the Raytheon Corporation proposed an interstellar ark driven by eight nuclear pulse rockets. The living quarters of the starship, habitable by 200 people but with room for growth ...

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+{{short description|Conceptual space vehicle for interstellar travel}}
 {{Redirect|Space ark|the fictional location in the ''Sonic the Hedgehog'' games|Sonic Adventure 2}}
-{{Use dmy dates|date=April 2013}}
+{{More citations needed|date=December 2021}}
+{{Use dmy dates|date=October 2022}}
-An '''interstellar ark''' or '''spaceark''' is a conceptual [[spacecraft|space vehicle]] designed for [[interstellar travel]]. Interstellar arks may be the most economically feasible method of traveling such distances. The ark has also been proposed as a potential habitat to preserve civilization and knowledge in the event of a global catastrophe.
+An '''interstellar ark''' is a conceptual [[starship]] designed for [[interstellar travel]]. Interstellar arks may be the most economically feasible method of traveling such distances.{{citation needed|date=December 2021}} The ark has also been proposed as a potential habitat to preserve civilization and knowledge in the event of a [[Global catastrophe scenarios|global catastrophe]].
-Such a ship would have to be large, requiring a large power plant.  The [[Project Orion (nuclear propulsion)|Project Orion]] concept of [[nuclear pulse propulsion|propulsion by nuclear pulses]] has been proposed.  The largest spacecraft design analyzed in Project Orion had a 400&nbsp;m diameter and weighed approximately 8 million tons.  It could be large enough to host a city of 100,000 or more people.
+Such a ship would have to be large, requiring a large [[power plant]]. The [[Project Orion (nuclear propulsion)|Project Orion]] concept of [[nuclear pulse propulsion|propulsion by nuclear pulses]] has been proposed. The largest spacecraft design analyzed in Project Orion had a {{Convert|400|m|ft|abbr=on|sp=us}} diameter and weighed approximately 8 million tons. It could be large enough to host a city of 100,000 or more people.
 == Thrust concepts ==
-Another concern is selection of power sources and mechanisms which would remain viable for the long time spans involved in [[interstellar travel]] through the desert of space. The longest lived space probes are the [[Voyager program]] probes, which use [[radioisotope thermoelectric generator]]s having a useful lifespan of a mere 50 years.
+Another concern is selection of power sources and mechanisms which would remain viable for the long time spans involved in [[interstellar travel]] through the desert of space. The longest-lived [[Space probe|space probes]] are the [[Voyager program]] probes, which use [[radioisotope thermoelectric generator]]s having a useful lifespan of a mere 50 years.
-One propulsion method for a crewed spacecraft could be a fusion microexplosion [[nuclear pulse propulsion]] system, like that proposed in [[Project Daedalus]] {{citation needed|date=November 2012}} that may allow it to obtain an interstellar cruising velocity of up to 10% of the [[speed of light]]. However, if the ship is capable of transits requiring hundreds of thousands of years, chemical and [[Gravity assist|gravitational slingshot]] propulsion may be sufficient.<ref>R.W. Moir and W.L. Barr (2005) [http://ralphmoir.com/media/jBIS.pdf "Analysis of Interstellar Spacecraft Cycling between the Sun and the Near Stars"] ''Journal of the British Interplanetary Society'' '''58,''' pp.332–341</ref><ref>Frederik Ceyssens, Maarten Driesen, Kristof Wouters, Pieter-Jan Ceyssens, Lianggong Wen (2011) [http://arxiv.org/ftp/arxiv/papers/1109/1109.5318.pdf "Organizing and financing interstellar space projects – A bottom-up approach"] (DARPA/NASA, Orlando, Florida: [http://100yss.org/ 100 Year Starship conference])</ref>
+One propulsion method for a crewed spacecraft could be a fusion microexplosion [[nuclear pulse propulsion]] system (like that proposed in [[Project Daedalus]]) that may allow it to obtain an interstellar cruising velocity of up to 10% of the [[speed of light]]. However, if the ship is capable of transits requiring hundreds of thousands of years, chemical and [[Gravity assist|gravitational slingshot]] propulsion may be sufficient.<ref>R.W. Moir and W.L. Barr (2005) [http://ralphmoir.com/media/jBIS.pdf "Analysis of Interstellar Spacecraft Cycling between the Sun and the Near Stars"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131102212601/http://ralphmoir.com/media/jBIS.pdf |date=2 November 2013 }} ''Journal of the British Interplanetary Society'' '''58,''' pp. 332–341</ref><ref>Frederik Ceyssens, Maarten Driesen, Kristof Wouters, Pieter-Jan Ceyssens, Lianggong Wen (2011) [https://arxiv.org/ftp/arxiv/papers/1109/1109.5318.pdf "Organizing and financing interstellar space projects – A bottom-up approach"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200407112337/https://arxiv.org/ftp/arxiv/papers/1109/1109.5318.pdf |date=7 April 2020 }} (DARPA/NASA, Orlando, Florida: [http://100yss.org/ 100 Year Starship conference] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120914082843/http://100yss.org/ |date=14 September 2012 }})</ref>
-==Specific proposals and research projects==
+== Specific proposals and research projects ==
+The [[Enzmann starship]] proposed in 1964 is a large fusion-powered spacecraft that could function as an interstellar ark, supporting a crew of 200 with extra space for expansion, on multi-year journeys at subluminal speeds to nearby star systems.<ref name="ridpath78">{{Cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=REEIAAAAIAAJ&q=Enzmann+starship |first=Ian |last=Ridpath |title=Messages from the stars: communication and contact with extraterrestrial life |year=1978 |publisher=Harper & Row |isbn=9780060135898 |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20131231165546/http://books.google.com/books?id=REEIAAAAIAAJ&q=Enzmann+starship&dq=Enzmann+starship&hl=en&ei=d5LmTOfOGIP_8AbYpLWvDQ&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=10&ved=0CEkQ6AEwCQ |archivedate=2013-12-31 |quote="As long ago as 1964, Robert D. Enzmann of the Raytheon Corporation proposed an interstellar ark driven by eight nuclear pulse rockets. The living quarters of the starship, habitable by 200 people but with room for growth ..."}}</ref>
-===Enzmann starship===
-{{main|Enzmann starship}}
-In 1964 [[Robert Enzmann]] proposed a large fusion-powered spacecraft that could function as an interstellar ark, supporting a crew of 200 with extra space for expansion, on multi-year journeys at subluminal speeds to nearby star systems.<ref name=ridpath78>[http://books.google.com/books?id=REEIAAAAIAAJ&q=Enzmann+starship&dq=Enzmann+starship&hl=en&ei=d5LmTOfOGIP_8AbYpLWvDQ&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=10&ved=0CEkQ6AEwCQ Ian Ridpath – '''Messages from the stars: communication and contact with extraterrestrial life''' (1978, Harper & Row, 241 pages) = Google Books 2010], Snippet View: "As long ago as 1964, Robert D. Enzmann of the Raytheon Corporation proposed an interstellar ark driven by eight nuclear pulse rockets. The living quarters of the starship, habitable by 200 people but with room for growth ..."</ref>
-===Project Orion===
 In 1955 [[Project Orion (nuclear propulsion)|Project Orion]] considered nuclear propulsion for spacecraft, suitable for deep space voyages.
+In 1973–1978 [[Project Daedalus]] was conducted by the [[British Interplanetary Society]] to study uncrewed interstellar spacecraft.
-===Project Daedalus===
-In 1973-1978 [[Project Daedalus]] was conducted by the [[British Interplanetary Society]] to study unmanned interstellar spacecraft.
-==Fiction==
-*The 1933 novel ''[[When Worlds Collide]]'' is one of the earliest examples of an interstellar ark. To save humanity from extinction when a star is about to destroy Earth, a group of astronomers construct a massive spaceship to carry forty humans, in addition to livestock and equipment, to a new planet.
-*[[Jack Williamson]]'s 1934 story "Born of the Sun" is another early example, in which planets are revealed to be no more than eggs for immense creatures. A steel magnate and his geologist-astrophysicist uncle create an "ark of space" to preserve the human race in the six months left in the Earth's existence. The ark is designed to hold two thousand people, be powered off of [[cosmic ray]]s, and to recycle water and waste to create synthetic food and air, thus providing for an unlimited survival of its crew in space.
-*Brian Aldiss' 1958 novel Starship (published as Non-Stop in England) describes a modified human civilization whose members do not realize they have been on a four-and-a-half century inter-stellar trip.
-*A group of three large arks served as the homes and battleships of the space-faring Thraki race in [[William C. Dietz]]'s Legion of the Damned series.
-*The concept of an interstellar ark was used humorously in the cult sci-fi classic ''[[The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy]]'', in the form of the B-Ark of the [[Places in The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy#Golgafrincham|Golgafrincham]] Ark Fleet, filled to capacity with cryosleeping advertising executives, management consultants, telephone sanitisers, and other "undesirables" whom the Golgafrinchams wanted to expel.
-*''[[The Starlost]]'' is a television series about a [[generation ship]] lost in space, whose inhabitants had forgotten that they were on a ship.
-*In the PC game ''[[Outpost (computer game)|Outpost]]'' series, an interstellar ark named ''Conestoga'' was used to evacuate a population of humans from the impending destruction of Earth.
-*The PC game ''[[Alien Legacy]]'' features "seedships", used to spread mankind due to an [[interstellar war]] that might wipe out the Earth.
-*The SS ''Botany Bay'' was a sleeper ship used by [[Khan Noonien Singh]] in the ''[[Star Trek: The Original Series|Star Trek]]'' first season episode "[[Space Seed]]".
-*A ''[[Star Trek The Original Series|Star Trek]]'' third season episode entitled "[[For the World Is Hollow and I Have Touched the Sky]]" takes place on a hollow [[asteroid]] generation 'ship' called ''Yonada''.
-*The ''Centauri Princess'' is a cylindrical interstellar ark peopled with humans, depicted in elaborate detail in the novel ''First Ark to [[Alpha Centauri]]'' by A. Ahad
-*The cylindrical generation ship ''Vanguard'' serves as the centerpiece of [[Robert A. Heinlein]]'s 1963 novel ''[[Orphans of the Sky]]'', a combination of two shorter 1941 works.
-*In the animated Disney-Pixar film ''[[WALL-E]]'', the space vessel ''Axiom'', originally intended as a temporary dwelling for humanity for a 5-year period during which robots were to clean up an environmentally devastated Earth, becomes a de facto ark housing multiple generations of humans over a period of 700 years.
-*In ''[[Stargate Atlantis]]'' third season episode "The Ark", Colonel Sheppard's team discovers a facility inside a hollowed-out moon that turns out to be an ark created by the people of the planet around which the moon is in orbit. The ark was built to preserve the existence of the people from the planet and rebuild its civilization after a [[Wraith (Stargate)|Wraith]] defeat. People were stored in stasis in the ark using Wraith beaming technology. The government then waged an unwinnable war against the Wraith, and purposely decimated the remainder of their own population with [[atomic bomb]]s, leading the Wraith to believe that these people are extinct.
-*Episode 30 of the radio drama ''[[Dimension X]]'', "Universe", featured a seed ship whose human population had split into the lower deck inhabitants and the upper deck inhabitants. The upper deck inhabitants were mutated by radiation leaking through the ship's hull. The inhabitants were not aware they were on a ship and believed the vessel contained the entirety of the universe. The episode was written by [[Robert A. Heinlein]].<ref>http://www.otrplotspot.com/DimensionX.htm</ref><ref>https://archive.org/details/OTRR_Dimension_X_Singles</ref>
-*In the ''[[Warhammer 40,000]]'' fictional universe, the [[Eldar (Warhammer 40,000)|Eldar]] race live and travel aboard interstellar arks, ''[[Eldar Craftworlds (Warhammer 40,000)|Craftworlds]]''
-*In ''[[Rendezvous with Rama]]'', by ''[[Arthur C. Clarke]]'', and later, followed by three more books, this time, co-written with JPL Space Director and novelist, ''[[Gentry Lee]],'' an alien interstellar ark transits through Earth's solar system. When a second ship flies round the Earth, (or is it the first ship again?), a trio of humans are “ensnared” by happenings inside the city-sized ship, who then ride the giant craft to the far reaches of the galaxy; constantly on man's best known quest: “what is all this and why are we here?”
-*1994 Sega Genesis game [[Generations Lost]] is a side-scrolling adventure game about a young man named Monobe who curious about his world and his people's future, embarks on a quest of with profound ramifications. Monobe discovers that this "world" he and his people live on is not a planet but a generation ship sent from Earth (via Luna Colony) in May 2037. Its purpose was to colonize a world named "Hope", in an interstellar voyage that would put them in orbit around Hope in the year 2385. The ship, Heritage, was designed to support 20 generations of colonists. Monobe's discovery is made in August 2671; fortunately his ancestors built the ship to sustain life for at least 700 years. The breakdown of protocol on board the vessel throughout the many generations meant that key systems were not maintained and the automatic descent systems that would have brought the Heritage down safely on Hope were not engaged so that the ship stayed in orbit for more than 200 years after arrival, with its occupants unaware that they needed to disembark on shuttles to the planet below.
-*[[New Zealand]] author [[Ken Catran]]'s ''[[Deepwater trilogy|Deepwater]]'' novel trilogy is a science fiction adventure for young adults about a massive generation ship ''Deepwater Black'' created by the dying population of a virus stricken Earth. The main inhabitants are teen clones all created from gene donors, all of which contributed to Earth society in phenomenal ways. As they travel on, they must survive the unknowns of space as well as the insecurities of being clones with the genetic memories of their dead donors constantly resurfacing in their heads. The novels were made into a 13 episode series for [[Yorkshire Television]] and [[SciFi Channel]] in 1997
-*In ''[[Hull Zero Three]]'', by [[Greg Bear]] (2010), an interstellar ark is equipped with a library of biological forms and generates customized individuals as needed during its voyage.
-*The 2005 novel ''[[Building Harlequin's Moon]]'' by [[Larry Niven]] and [[Brenda Cooper]] follows the story of one of three arks that flee a dying solar system (due to A.I. and nanotechnology that has gone bad).  Most of the inhabitants are in suspended animation, but they are forced to stop and build a society to create enough anti-matter to continue the trip.
-*The 2009 film ''[[Pandorum]]'' is set on an interstellar ark called ''Elysium''. Originally sent into space to seed a new world since Earth was overpopulated, the ship has fallen into disarray and is largely overrun by a cannibalistic humans subspieces who evolved from passengers who went insane after Earth had mysteriously disappeared.
 ==See also==
@@ Line 53: / Line 26: @@
 ==External links==
-*[http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2002/02/0220_0220_wirelifeinspace.html News article]
+*[https://web.archive.org/web/20020305234814/http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2002/02/0220_0220_wirelifeinspace.html News article]
 *[http://lifeboat.com/ex/space.habitats Lifeboat Foundation]