Contact: Lynne Zielinski, National Space Society, 202-429-1600, Media2016@nss.org 

WASHINGTON, May 6, 2016 /Standard Newswire/ -- Pete Worden, former director of NASA Ames Research Center, will present "Starshot, Mission to Alpha Centauri," at the Thursday (May 19) luncheon during the National Space Society's International Space Development Conference®. NSS Governor Janet Ivey will emcee the luncheon which also features the presentation of the Heinlein award to Dr. Jerry Pournelle. Rich Pournelle of Nanoracks will receive the award for his father. The conference is open to the public and is set for May 18-22, 2016 at the Sheraton Puerto Rico Hotel and Casino in San Juan, Puerto Rico.

Breakthrough Starshot is a $100 million research and engineering program aiming to demonstrate proof of concept for light-propelled nanocrafts. These could fly at 20 percent of light speed and capture images of possible planets and other scientific data in our nearest star system, Alpha Centauri, just over 20 years after their launch.

The program will be led by Pete Worden, the former director of NASA AMES Research Center, and advised by a committee of world-class scientists and engineers. The board will consist of Stephen Hawking, Yuri Milner, and Mark Zuckerberg.

ISDC is the yearly conference of the National Space Society, a non-profit organization that has hosted the gathering since 1982. The event brings together leading managers, engineers, scientists, educators, and business people from civilian, military, commercial, entrepreneurial, and grassroots advocacy space sectors.

Online registration is currently open with a variety of options, from single-day registration passes to full conference registration with meals. Discounts are provided for youth, full-time students, seniors, and members of the National Space Society and its affiliates.

"We would like to invite local attendees interested in space to the annual conference of the world's premier space public interest group," stated Aggie Kobrin, the conference organizer and NSS board member.

For more information, visit isdc2016.nss.org.

About the National Space Society (NSS): NSS is an independent nonprofit educational membership organization dedicated to the creation of a spacefaring civilization. NSS is widely acknowledged as the preeminent citizen's voice on space, with over 50 chapters in the United States and around the world. The Society publishes Ad Astra magazine, an award-winning periodical chronicling the most important developments in space. To learn more, visit www.nss.org.  

About the International Space Development Conference® (ISDC). National Space Society's International Space Development Conference (ISDC) 2016 (May 18-22) celebrates the increasingly collaborative, multinational, multidisciplinary, and interconnected nature of space development in the 21st century: Space Beyond Borders. If you seek to accelerate our pursuits beyond planet Earth and learn about the opportunities the emerging space economy can bring to science, technology and exploration, ISDC is the preeminent gathering place for you. NSS chose Puerto Rico as a surprisingly inexpensive travel destination. isdc.nss.org/2016/ 

National Space Society
P.O. Box 98106
Washington, DC  20090-8106
(202) 429-1600