ToolsInterstellar Travel

Science & speculation

Interstellar Travel Time Calculator

How long would another star take to reach—and how different would the journey feel aboard the ship?

Choose a destination and speed

Use a preset or enter any distance. Results assume a constant cruising speed below the speed of light.

Earth time and traveller time

At ordinary speeds, both are practically identical. Near light speed, special relativity predicts that less time passes aboard the moving ship than for observers who remain on Earth.

What the calculator leaves out

Real missions must accelerate, decelerate, carry energy and shielding, survive radiation and navigate around hazards. This is a clean constant-speed comparison, not a mission design.

Communication cannot cheat

A signal travelling at light speed still needs one year to cross one light-year. An interstellar civilization may solve transport before it solves conversation.