I've been following the discussion on the Lunar Space Elevator idea. While it sounds intriquing, I suspect we'll see a mass driver approach to delivering lunar...
... I think that for delivering goods and stuff *to* the moon, a lunar space elevator is really nice. You more or less just carry it to the L1 point on an ion...
What is impact of balloon assist on lower portion of space elevator cable. If you use a series of balloons to hold some of the bottom of the cable does it...
... It would be practically no help. Lifting 15 miles of a 60,000 mile cable will reduce its weight by (15/60000)*100 = 0.025% The climbers would need extra...
I don't have my space-elevator books with me at the moment, but I don't believe this calculation is so simple. The 15+ miles of ribbon being held by balloons ...
There are a number of other reasons that a balloon might be useful besides reducing the ribbon weight. But putting a balloon that high, that is big enough to...
... No, it's trivial. The cable isn't significantly tapered over such a short distance even low down near the Earth. Fundamentally, the cable needs to be...
The balloon makes sense if the laser is space based. Then the climber could be lifted out of the atmosphere by balloon, where the laser can take over. This...
... You say, 'laser is space based' I say 'orbital space weapon'. You say 'avoid the problems of atmospheric effects' I say 'please don't shoot me'. -- -Ian...
Greetings, I'm a new member and I thought many of you would be interested in knowing about a film that highlights the space elevator. A new documentary film...
Any laser useful for powering a climber, would be a very poor weapon. Any laser that would be a good weapon, would be useless for powering a climber (It would...
... No, for a climber it wouldn't care too much, you can design it to take it pretty easily. But for the average thing on the ground, a laser like that would...
... Could you design it such that it wouldn't penetrate the atmosphere? A frequency that's absorbed by water vapor or carbon dioxide or methane, say? That...
... Planes could be fuelled by hydrogen. Only a few hundred major airports would need changing, unlike the millions of car gasoline stations. Cars suffer...
I guess this would be both an engineering and financial problem -- but not an insoluble one. At first glance, though, wouldn't this require larger, sturdier...
... I think the main problem is physics: energy density. Jet Fuel has an energy density of 42.8 MJ/kg (weight) or 33 MJ/L (volume). For hydrogen it would...
... but not an insoluble one. At first glance, though, wouldn't this require larger, sturdier fuel tanks, making planes even heavier? ... Nice aircraft. I...
Hydrogen would a good substitute fuel, but it was tried over and over again around the turn of the last century thru the nineteen-thirties, but it was its own...
Space ElevatorHi, group... I mostly just lurk, and the exchanges here have always been very interesting. I saw an article on Space.com recently that NASA is...
... Nah, it's not much more explosive than gasoline. Lots of rockets use it without too much problem in fact. It's fiddly to handle safely, but done routinely....
At Mach 5 or higher it does not really make sense to push through the atmosphere. This is why the future of intercontinental travel is outside the atmosphere. ...
... It pretty much isn't anyway. Supersonic aircraft fly very high, hypersonics, higher. There's hardly any air up there. ... If you mean rockets, no. ... No,...
... That makes sense. As you increase speed and altitude, though, isn't there a point somewhere when rockets become more efficient than jets? Is that point...
... Around 3-4. Also depends on what you call efficient, time to target or mpg. My experience with Hydrogen, and I have some, is the tanks are big balloons...
Jerry Irvine
01rocket@...
Jul 18, 2008 9:41 pm
8347
... It's a complicated question. As a rough rule of thumb, rockets work best at speeds around mach 8-12; and up, but are very inefficient below about Mach 5....
I disagree, A climber that can take a laser hit that could take out plane, would not be very practical for a transportation system. I do agree that ther might...
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