Space travel has always captured the imagination of humanity — but how fast can we actually go? From real-life NASA missions to legendary science fiction vessels, the race for speed beyond Earth’s atmosphere has defined both engineering progress and pop culture dreams. In this article, we take a closer look at some of the fastest spacecrafts ever created, comparing their velocities across science and fiction.

In real-world terms, NASA’s Parker Solar Probe currently holds the record for the fastest man-made object. As it approaches the Sun, it’s expected to reach speeds of over 430,000 miles per hour (700,000 km/h). This blistering speed is necessary to withstand the intense gravitational pull of the Sun and gather vital data from the solar corona.

Close behind are missions like New Horizons, which zoomed past Pluto at nearly 36,000 mph (58,000 km/h), and the Voyager probes, which continue to drift into interstellar space decades after their launch. Though not the fastest by today’s standards, these spacecraft laid the foundation for humanity’s deep space exploration.

But when it comes to fictional spacecraft, the limits of speed are often shattered. The Millennium Falcon from Star Wars, for example, is said to travel faster than light thanks to its hyperdrive system — making real-world records look like a snail’s pace. Meanwhile, Star Trek’s USS Enterprise operates on warp drive, theoretically bending space-time itself to travel faster than light.

While these fictional ships may never exist in our current timeline, they continue to inspire engineers and space agencies around the world. As propulsion technology evolves — with concepts like ion thrusters, nuclear fusion drives, and even warp bubbles being studied — the gap between imagination and reality might one day shrink. For now, whether in labs or on screens, the race to go faster than ever continues to push the boundaries of what’s possible.