Coming soon, a stairway to heaven!

The idea of a 'space elevator' could become more than sci-fi fantasy, courtesy the efforts of British scientists.

A team of UK researchers has taken the first step on what could be a stairway to heaven.

With the help of 2.7-million pound research prize from NASA, Cambridge University scientists have created the world's strongest ribbon: a cylindrical strand of carbon that combines lightweight flexibility with incredible strength and has the potential to stretch vast distances, reports TimesOnline.

The breakthrough has been seized upon by the space scientists, who believe the technology could allow astronauts to travel into space via a cable thousands of miles long -- a space elevator.

According to the scientists, the advancement will revolutionise space travel. Such an elevator could potentially offer limitless and cheap space travel, they believe.

The Cambridge team is making about 1 gram of the high-tech material per day, enough to stretch to 18 miles in length.

"We have NASA on the phone asking for 144,000 miles of the stuff, but there is a difference between what can be achieved in a lab and on an industrial level," says Alan Windle, professor of materials science at Cambridge University, who is anxious not to let the work get ahead of itself.