The campaign aims to raise £20,000,000 (NZ$37,470,219) by April 1 for "more detailed plans and enough chicken wire to protect reactor exhaust ports", and has the stretch goal of £543,000,000,000,000,000 (NZ$1,017,282,501,915,175,296) to secure funding for actual construction.
Another campaign, from Shanghai-based Kickstarter user Simon Kwan, has been launched to respond to the threat posed by the proposed Death Star.
"We can't let this new Death Star go unchallenged, so we're raising funds to form a new Rebel Alliance and construct a fleet of proton torpedo armed X-Wing fighters to take down this new Death Star."
The X-Wing squadron campaign has already had US$137,400 (NZ$164,300) of the US$4,485,672,683 (NZ$5,363,280,335) believed to be needed to build an entire squadron and train pilots.
However fear not, there will not be a giant structure capable of destroying planets casting a shadow over planet Earth should the funds be found. Due to Kickstarter's rules, both the Death Star and X-wing fighter campaigns have assured donors the campaigns are jokes. If the campaigns reach their targets donations would be returned.
Paul Shawcross, an Obama administration adviser on science and space, responded to the petition to build a Death Star last month, saying the structure would cost too much to build - an estimated $850 quadrillion - at a time the White House is working to reduce the federal budget.
The Obama administration "does not support blowing up planets", Shawcross said.
- www.nzherald.co.nz
