Editing Openai/691a2d9f-c044-8012-bccf-942bfce6334d (section)

==== Short answer: yes, in principle. ====

What you’re describing is basically:
* Start with an ice block in some outer orbit (asteroid belt, Kuiper belt, whatever).
* Give it Δv with a nuclear drive so its orbit is a Sun-grazing ellipse.
* It dives deep into the Sun’s potential well.
* With the right incoming velocity and angle, it can: - swing around the Sun - leave on a hyperbolic escape trajectory - with an asymptote pointing roughly toward Alpha Centauri.

Key points:
* We already know solar Oberth / gravity assists can give large velocity boosts if you fire engines near perihelion.
* You’re combining: - nuclear engine burns at outer and/or perihelion - plus the Oberth effect (burn when moving fastest) - plus gravity assist geometry.

So as a trajectory design problem, this is legit. It’s just scaling it to million-ton ice blocks that’s insane, but not impossible in the “laws of physics” sense, just in the “civilization capability” sense.

So yes, you can:
* pick outbound escape trajectories whose asymptotic direction is near the line toward Alpha Centauri
* throw mass along that corridor
* at escape speeds far higher than you could get by pushing from Earth alone.