The universe is filled with flashy pyrotechnics, such as exploding stars or flaring black holes, which spew out unfathomable amounts of light and energy. These luminous objects have helped humans understand our cosmic surroundings for centuries, but a new study suggests they could have a more futuristic function—spaceship propulsion.
Given how much energy these sources pump out, it’s worth considering if any spacecraft could harness their power, argue the co-authors of a study that proposes such an approach: Manasvi Lingam, an astrobiologist at the Florida Institute of Technology, and Abraham Loeb, a theoretical physicist at Harvard University.
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