Dear all: Happy New Year. This is the first time I post message, though I have been on this list for quite a while. I have strong research backgroud and...
... Very interesting. Would the elevator speed depend on the vibration frequency? What kind of frequencies would be needed for, say, 200 km/h speeds? Would...
... The brush bristles can be replaced by ratchets. The ribbon would have to be made from at least 3 interwoven threads to give the ratchet something to grip....
Cute proposal, but I just don't see it working. Would vibrations on the ground get any higher than a few hundred meters? Wouldn't they be dampened by the...
I remember reading an article in the Journal of British Inter-planetary Science (JBIS) that discussed several different methods on how to stop a space tether...
... [snip]> ... To go downwards just turn the racket upside down. You will also need a brake to slow down. ... the ... You would need two ribbons - one to go...
I agree, high frequency vibrations would dissipate way too fast. Also, the standing wave nodes would be a problem. The one way out is to use the lowest mode....
I have been looking at the toy helicopter the wright brothers played with as kids. I am suprised that no one has thought of using aerodynamic lift to aid the...
... with as kids. I am suprised that no one has thought of using aerodynamic lift to aid the climber until it is out of the atmosphere. One example being...
All proposals of lift inside the atmosphere suffer the same problem: The benefit is minuscule. Even granting the first miles are the hardest, there are plenty...
The main show stopper with an orbiting cable based space elevator is the very large expense of transporting the materiel into orbit. The first "starter" cable...
Distance around low earth orbit is 1.6 billion inches. There is about 5000 tons of space junk. At 0.1 pound per cubic inch that would be 100 million cubic...
... I like it! Let's do it! ;-) ... -- -Ian Woollard We live in an imperfectly imperfect world. Life in a perfectly imperfect world would be *much* better....
... The cost of collecting that much debris in that many orbits then fabricating it in orbit would exceed the cost of just launching it in sections with...
Jerry Irvine
01rocket@...
Mar 1, 2009 6:55 pm
8531
... 01rocket@...> ... 5000 tons of stuff shot into orbit at 10,000 dollars a pound cost 100 billion dollars. Gathering and changing orbits using a solar...
... Unfortunately, yes it is a lot more expensive, even with ion drives. The delta-v needed to change orbital planes significantly is extremely large, and in...
You can do any plane change with about 0.8 times the delta-V needed to reach the orbit in the first place. ISP for ion is about 2000 seconds, where for...
... No, actually the worst case is ~16 km/s delta-v- for example with a west-east orbit you may want to access the east-west orbit. There might be tricks you...
... Totally. Most of the "space junk" is quite small. If you really want a tug to zoom around moving it all you also have to factor in the weight of the tug....
... There is one practical way. Use a laser to heat one edge of the junk to thrust it to an orbital change. If you had a laser tug with about a 200 mile...
Jerry Irvine
01rocket@...
Mar 2, 2009 12:39 am
8537
some of the junk in LEO could be used for a counterweight ... From: Jerry Irvine <01rocket@...> Subject: Re: [space-elevator] Re: Orbiting Cable Based...
... Given its density (nuclear shielding, solid propellant, dense steels), that is a far better use than "refining it in orbit for some rope or something". ...
Jerry Irvine
01rocket@...
Mar 2, 2009 3:56 am
8539
When you say "heat" I presume you mean vaporize. If we're talking about a regularly shapped item, this might work. I have reservations about continuing...
Ian- I often enjoy reading your posts, but I have an issue with your signature line. In actual fact, we live in a perfect world, we're just too simple to...
Let's not forget the EMP produced by nuclear explosions. We might clear the skies, and we might wind turning off the lights as well. ... at least we may...
... You my friend, are a pessimist; and are thus utterly unsuitable to post on this list. ;-) ... -- -Ian Woollard We live in an imperfectly imperfect world....