Proxima Centauri is probably a poor choice of first destination, as there can be little of interest there. The probes could make a point of only flying past pl

Proxima Centauri is probably a poor choice of first destination, as there can be little of interest there. The probes could make a point of only flying past planets, and the destination star. Courtesy, indeed, demands it. It is not clear that a probe entering a planetary atmosphere would disperse before striking the surface; at 60,000 km/s, it would have less than a ms to disperse in. I am curious how you encountered this story, at this late date, so deeply buried in HN's lists.