Mesmerising animation reveals how humans could colonise the Milky Way and begin to conquer the entire galaxy

• The simulation was the winner of a NASA 'interplanetary trajectory' competition
• It envisaged a future in which huge colony ships voyage across the Milky Way 
• Entrants had to plot out the most efficient way to colonise 100,000 star systems
• The winning entry was submitted by a team of experts from institutions in China A roadmap for colonising the galaxy is brought to life in a mesmerising animation that plots paths for future humanity's ships as they take settlers out among the stars.

The model shows all the individual journeys that would be needed for a methodical series of migrations by giant colony vessels to 100,000 habitable star systems.

Developed by Chinese experts, the simulation won a NASA competition to solve a 'nearly-impossible' mathematical puzzle of interplanetary trajectory design.

The galaxy-settling model is the brainchild of a team of Chinese researchers from the National University of Defense Technology in Changsha and the Xi'an Satellite Control Center. 

The simulation won this year's Global Trajectory Optimization Competition, held by NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory in California, which opened on May 21 and closed on June 12, 2019.

This year's competition theme, 'Settlers of the Galaxy', envisaged a future in which humanity had developed the necessary technology and impetus to spread out across the Milky Way.

Participating research teams were challenged to find the most energy-efficient way to uniformly settle 100,000 different habitable star systems while using as little propulsion as possible.Competition setter and NASA scientist Anastassios Petropoulos described the scenario as follows: 'In about ten thousand years from the present, humanity will reset its counting of years to zero.'

'Year Zero will be the year when humanity decides the time is ripe for the human race to boldly venture into the galaxy and settle other star systems.'

'Although technologies and knowledge have dramatically progressed, we are still subject to the tyranny of inertia and remain far from the near-instantaneous space travel depicted fancifully in science fiction,' Dr Petropoulos finished.

Such space ships would therefore need to be so-called 'generation ships' — enormous, self-supporting vessels that would be home to various successive generations of humans in the time needed for them to reach their destination. 

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A roadmap for colonising the galaxy is brought to life in a stunning animation that shows the paths of future humanity's ships as they take settlers out among the stars

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The model shows all the individual journeys that would be needed for a methodical series of migrations by giant colony vessels to 100,000 habitable star systems

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Starting from the Solar System, depicted as a yellow dot, the initial expansion out into our galaxy are painted in blue and green, while subsequent launches from other star systems are portrayed in red

In the researchers' video — which looks like somewhat like a fireworks display — each coloured streak represents the path of human generation ships as they forge their way between the stars.

Starting from the Solar System, depicted as a yellow dot, the initial expansion out into our galaxy are painted in blue and green, while subsequent launches from other star systems are portrayed in red.

In keeping with the contest scenario, the initial exodus from the solar system featured three so-called 'motherships' — each able to deploy ten planet-colonising pods — and two fast ships that can only colonise a single planet.

Each subsequently-settled planet can then, after 2 million years, launch three settler ships that can only colonise a single planet.

The colonisation models were allowed to run for the equivalent of 90 million years.

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The space ships in the models would need to be so-called 'generation ships' — enormous, self-supporting vessels that would be home to various successive generations of humans in the time needed for them to reach their destination (pictured, in an artist's impression)

At the end of the winning simulation, the model shows human settlements spread all across both of the neighbouring arms of the galaxy, Perseus and Carina–Sagittarius, which lie on either side of the so-called Orion Spur minor arm that contains the Sun.

At the same time, the animation shows much of the distant Scutus-Centaurus Arm also well-settled, falling into humanity's galactic civilisation.

In recognition of the rate at which humanity is depleting the resources of the Solar system — making the leap to interstellar migration time-sensitive — participating teams were awarded bonus points for submitting their solutions early. 

'Humanity’s resources are dwindling and the sooner we decide on a settlement plan for the galaxy, the better,' Dr Petropoulos wrote.

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Another entry, pictured, developed by a think tank from the European Space Agency's Advanced Concepts Team came in third place

Take a look at how a future humanity could colonise the galaxy

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Another entry developed by a think tank from the European Space Agency's Advanced Concepts Team came in third place.

The video illustrating the ESA researchers' model was presented at the Interstellar Workshop that was held at the European Space Research and Technology Centre in Noordwijk, the Netherlands, between June 20–21 2019.

Among the topics discussed at the event were the potential for developing generation ships that could travel between the stars, laser-based propulsion systems for spacecraft and methods to keep humans healthy in space.

Researchers also explored how societies might function on enormous generation ships — including how language might evolve on-board.

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In keeping with the contest scenario, the initial exodus from the solar system featured three so-called 'motherships' — each able to deploy ten planet-colonising pods — and two fast ships that can only colonise a single planet (pictured, an artist's impression of a generation ship)

WHAT ARE GENERATION SHIPS? 

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The inside of a hypothetical generation ship

Generation ships — or 'worldships' — are a hypothetical type of giant spacecraft capable of travelling the colossal distances between stars.

Travelling only at sub-light speeds, the vessels would likely take thousands of years to reach their destinations and play host to successive generations of travellers, with the descendants of the original crew reaching the destination.

Any such vessel would need to be entirely self-sustaining and able to provide energy, air, water and food for it inhabitants.

One proposed design for a worldship — dubbed an O'Neill colony — would see humans living on the inside surfaces of two giant, rotating cylinders.

The concept of generational ships come with various ethical and social issues.

For example, would it even be appropriate to lock the descendants of the original crew into pushing onward with a mission they did not choose — and may even be destined to never see to fruition?

There is also the question of as to whether such a society would be able to endure, or whether it would break down by, for example, a mutiny.

World's first battery-powered hybrid cruise ship sails for the Arctic on its maiden voyage

• Engines run mainly on marine gasoil, but the ship can also run solely on batteries
• Under ideal conditions, it can run for 45-60 minutes on its battery packs alone
• It heads for the Arctic this week and will sail the Northwest Passage to Alaska The world's first cruise ship propelled partially by battery power is set to head out from northern Norway on its maiden voyage, cruise operator Hurtigruten said on Monday.

The hybrid expedition cruise ship, the Roald Amundsen, can take 500 passengers and is designed to sail in harsh climate waters.

Named after the Norwegian explorer who navigated the Northwest Passage in 1903-1906 and was first to reach the South Pole in 1911, the ship heads for the Arctic from Tromsoe this week and will sail the Northwest Passage to Alaska before heading south, reaching Antarctica in October.

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The world's first cruise ship propelled partially by battery power is set to head out from northern Norway on its maiden voyage. The company estimates that the battery pack will reduce fuel consumption and save about 20% in carbon dioxide emissions

HOW DOES THE HYBRID SHIP WORK? 

The Roald Amundsen runs on both battery power and marine gasoil in effort to cut down on fuel consumption and carbon dioxide emissions.

The ship can run on battery alone for 45-60 minutes at a time, or use the hybrid system to 'compensate for spinning reserve and aid in peak shaving,' according to Hurtigruten.

These improvements in efficiency could slash carbon dioxide emissions by about 20 percent, the company says.

While the engines run mainly on marine gasoil, the ship's battery pack enables it to run solely on batteries for around 45 to 60 minutes under ideal conditions, Hurtigruten Chief Executive Daniel Skjeldam told Reuters.

The company estimates that the battery pack will reduce fuel consumption and save about 20% in carbon dioxide emissions, compared to if the ship was operating on marine gasoil alone.

'It's designed to take excessive energy from the engines and put into the battery when the ship doesn't need it, and put it back into the engine when the ship needs it -- it is a way of reducing emissions significantly without having charging stations available,' Skjeldam said.

The company, which operates scenic cruise lines along the country's fjords and into the Arctic, was inspired by Norway's fleet of hybrid ferries and also its growing fleet of electric cars, he said.

Battery technology for propelling ships is in its infancy, even on shorter routes, as few ports provide charging stations.

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The hybrid expedition cruise ship, the Roald Amundsen, can take 500 passengers and is designed to sail in harsh climate waters

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While the engines run mainly on marine gasoil, the ship's battery pack enables it to run solely on batteries for around 45 to 60 minutes under ideal conditions

'We expect batteries to be an important part of shipping in the years to come, but of course we don't expect our ships to be able to operate only on batteries, because the ship can sail up to 18-20 days in areas where there are no charging points,' Skjeldam said.

Hurtigruten expects infrastructure will improve on its traditional routes along the Norwegian coast, while currently charging services are only provided in Bergen, Norway's second-largest city.

The future for batteries on larger ships also hinges on suppliers' capacity to develop lighter, more powerful systems.

The company, which operates scenic cruise lines along the country's fjords and into the Arctic, was inspired by Norway's fleet of hybrid ferries and also its growing fleet of electric cars, he said

'We expect a revolution on battery technology for ships, we expect batteries to be lighter, more effective, and we've set aside extra room for more batteries to be installed when battery packs become more effective,' Skjeldam said.

He added that the second hybrid cruise ship the company has on order, to be delivered later this year, will have battery pack with twice the capacity of the Roald Amundsen. 

Massive aquifer containing enough freshwater to fill a 15,000-SQUARE-MILE lake discovered off the US East Coast

• A giant subterranean fresh water aquifer has been discovered by scientists 
• The newfound reserve holds enough water to fill a 15,000 square foot lake
• It could help unlock a critical supply of fresh water for drought-stricken regions
• The water was trapped between 15,000 to 20,000 years ago, experts say

Scientists say a massive freshwater aquifer discovered off the coast of the US could help mitigate water crises in North America and abroad. 

In a study spearheaded by scientists at Columbia University, the researchers say the gargantuan subterranean aquifer spans at least from New Jersey to Massachusetts and sprawls outward into the ocean, reaching the edge of the continental shelf. 

Scientists say if the water contained in the aquifer were a surface-level lake, it would cover about 15,000 square miles. 

A giant reserve of fresh water has been confirmed off the coast the US, hidden beneath the surface. Its extent is plotted in the hashed area of the map above

Among other things, the study published in the journal Scientific Report gives hope that similar aquifers may lie off the coast of other land masses around the world and could provide a much-needed supply of fresh water for drought-stricken communities.

The study, which is based on surveys by the team that started in 2015, confirms theories that date back to the 1970's when oil companies reported finding freshwater while drilling off-shore. 

Unbeknownst to companies at the time, the relatively small drill holes bored into the ocean floor were the first foray into a massive underground lake.

'We knew there was fresh water down there in isolated places, but we did not know the extent or geometry,' said lead author Chloe Gustafson, a PhD. candidate at Columbia University’s Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory in a statement. 

'It could turn out to be an important resource in other parts of the world.'To map the aquifer, researchers dropped a machine into the ocean which then propelled electromagnetic waves beneath the seafloor. 

Since salt water is a better conductor of electromagnetic energy, scientists were able to measure the existence of fresh water based on conductivity -- the less conductivity the lower the salt content.

What scientists found were deposits of fresh water far that extended beyond their expectations. 

Scientists hope the fresh water could help combat extreme drought in regions like California which has witnessed soaring average temperatures. File photo

In some cases, the researchers say, the water starts at about 600 feet and extends 1,200 feet below the ground and just out as far as 75 miles into the continental shelf. 

Water was trapped beneath the ocean floor somewhere between 15,000 to 20,000 years ago, via a tandem of processes according to scientists. 

In one scenario the water began to accumulate when sea levels were much lower via rain water, rivers, and even glacial melt water. As sea levels rose and brought with it an increasing amount of sediment, that water may have been trapped underneath the surface. 

Additionally, scientists say the aquifer was able to grow by runoff from land. Rainwater and other freshwater is being pushed into the sea and is absorbed into the aquifer due to the aquifer because of the vacillating tides -- the ebb and flow creates an effect similar to squeezing a sponge.

Regardless of how the water got there, scientists are already thinking about how it might be used in the future. To fully purpose the resource for drinking water, researchers say it would have to undergo some desalination. 

Unlike pure saltwater, however, since the water is mostly considered fresh, desalination -- often tedious and expensive -- would be a much easier process. 

HOW BIG IS THE AQUIFER DISCOVERED OFF THE COAST OF THE US?

Scientists say a massive freshwater aquifer discovered off the coast of the US could help mitigate water crises in North America and abroad. 

The aquifer stretches from the shore at least from Massachusetts to New Jersey, extending continuously for about 50 miles to the edge of the continental shelf.

If found on the surface, it would create a lake covering some 15,000 square miles.

Researchers, who surveyed the aquifer with electromagnetic waves, say the deposits are more or less continuous, starting at the shoreline and extending far into the continental shelf.

In some cases, it stretches as far as 75 miles. For the most part, the deposits begins at around 600 feet below the ocean floor, and bottom out at about 1,200 feet. 

They estimate that the region holds at least 670 cubic miles of fresh water. 

The water probably got under the seabed in one of two different ways, say the researchers. Some 15,000 to 20,000 years ago, toward the end of the last glacial age.