Icarus Interstellar has agreed to fund the first in a series of Institute for Interstellar Studies initiatives aimed at launching a brand new set of international interstellar related Starship design competitions. The set of awards, known collectively as the Alpha Centauri Prize awards, will be organized annually, with the aim of generating an incentive to achieve technical progress in interstellar studies. We will set technical standards for physicists, engineers, biologists and scientists to reach for, harnessing the skills of old, and building the skills of new. We will foster and encourage pathways to new design concepts which solve old problems, and generate insights into new ones – welcome to the exciting Alpha Centauri Prize Awards.
“I believe that a prize award holds huge potential to create both incentive and excitement within the interstellar community. Over the years I hope that this award grows substantially and that one day international teams will come together to compete for this prestigious prize. We were honored to fund this award.” says Dr. Richard Obousy, President of Icarus Interstellar.
“I believe it is very important that the interstellar community begins to actively foster research progress, and this includes through financial incentives. This award is the first in a set of prizes we will be launching over the next year and we hope that by setting standards and examples of excellence, this will motivate others to be the best that they can be, and through that see technical progress made”, says Kelvin F.Long, Executive Director Institute for Interstellar Studies.
The Alpha Centauri Prize will be awarded at Starship Congress, Dallas, on Sunday 18th August 2013. The particular award on this occasion, known as the “Progenitor Award”, will be given to a speaker “who’s presentation is deemed, by the judges, to have the most potential for impact on the field of interstellar flight”. The winner will be awarded a certificate and a $500 cash incentive, which has been generously sponsored by Icarus Interstellar.
This is the second prize announcement by Icarus Interstellar – with the Black Sky Thinking Prize announced on Monday 5th August 2013. “Both prizes have their own unique flavor.” says Dr. Obousy. “Cash prizes have a demonstrated track record of success, with recent examples including the Ansari X-Prize and the Google Lunar Xprize.”
The Alpha Centauri Prize