Royal Observatory Christmas Lecture: Space talk: Can We Reach the Stars?

Humans have walked on the Moon and robot spacecraft have even travelled to the edge of the Solar System, but space scientist and TV presenter Dr Maggie Aderin-Pocock sets her sights much further afield for the Royal Observatory’s Christmas Lecture.

As a child Maggie dreamed of travelling to the stars, but current manned space missions are focused on the International Space Station (ISS) a mere 300 miles above the Earth’s Surface. What if one wanted to travel further, to the very stars themselves? Is this possible with current technology, and if not, what is in the pipeline now that would enable such a journey in the future? Can such travel ever be worth the expense and risk, and what will we find out there?

Space Talks programme

This event is part of our regular Space Talks programme in which guest scientists are invited to explain the latest cutting-edge discoveries in astronomy and space science in an engaging and accessible way. All talks are suitable for beginners and no prior knowledge is required: just a healthy dose of curiosity.