James Benford takes a hard look at where we are now in the matter of sail stability. He and his brother Gregory have analyzed it in laboratory work. There is a great deal we still don't know. There is the need for a dedicated test facility in which deep analysis and experimentation can proceed. Dr Benford is the Chairman of the Sail Subcommittee for Breakthrough Starshot. Breakthrough starshot has $100 million in funding.

Breakthrough Starshot is a research and engineering project by Breakthrough Initiatives to develop a proof-of-concept fleet of light sail spacecraft, named StarChip, capable of making the journey to the Alpha Centauri star system, 4.37 light-years away, at speeds between 15% and 20% of the speed of light, taking between 30 and 20 years to get there, respectively, and about 4 years to notify Earth of a successful arrival.