NASA scientist Philip Lubin claims he can get a crewed spacecraft to the Red Planet in just 30 minutes and that too without a magic trick. It is possible to reach Mars at a significant fraction of the speed of light using energy propulsion, thinks Lubin.

Speed of a spacecraft heading towards Mars could be accelerated by firing a laser at the craft, said UC Santa Barbara physics professor Lubin. As per the scientist’s 30-minute trip to Mars plan, a powerful laser could be used at the spacecraft to provide it extra acceleration. When the laser will strike the space vehicle, it may be able to achieve frictionless acceleration in space.

“As an example, on the eventual upper end, a full-scale (50-70 GW) DE-STAR 4 — Directed Energy System for Targeting of Asteroids and Exploration — will propel a wafer scale spacecraft with a one meter sail to about 26 percent the speed of light in about 10 minutes”, explained Lubin. The speed of the spacecraft will be so fast that it will be able to pass space probe Voyager 1 in less than 72 hours, and reach in just 15 years, Lubin continued.

Lubin’s plan seems like a Christopher Nolan movie, but the NASA expert claims the 30-minute jaunt is close to reality. In a 52-page scientific journal, Lubin has detailed how to reach the Red Planet in just half an hour.

Lubin’s claim has left many space enthusiasts numb, but there are some people too who think there are many obstacles that Lubin didn’t consider. But the NASA scientists said there are many ways to tackle space problems during the Mars journey, such as how speed of the spacecraft will slow down and how the craft will avoid space junks.