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kernal42 t1_j112sil wrote

>Even at the speed of light, it would still take 4 years to travel to the nearest star system (Alpha Centauri). You can’t just yell “Hyperspeed, Chewie!” and travel through large distances instantaneously, because it’s just not possible.

That's not true. It would appear to take 4 years from Earth's perspective to reach Alpha Centauri while traveling at the speed of light....however in your reference frame (as the traveler, at the speed of light) it would be instantaneous! This is the weirdness of special relativity.

Source: PhD in astrophysics.

Of course, it will probably always be impractical to travel fast enough for this sort of time dilation to be significant, so do refer to the other responses in the thread for the practical answers.

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MysteryMystery305 OP t1_j1160z3 wrote

When I say 4 years, I mean 4 years to an outside viewer. Say that you had to travel to Alpha Centauri in less than a week because a friend of yours who lives on Alpha Centauri needs lifesaving medication. Sure, for you it would be instantaneous, but your friend has been dead for over 4 years. It makes things like communication nearly impossible.

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kernal42 t1_j11gnm8 wrote

Your original question had comments about food and survival during the long trip.

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