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#2 Re: Human missions » Space Elevators.....How Soon? » 2004-05-16 21:39:17

Two weeks actually and about 60% of the trip will be through the van allen belts in some way or another.

It's a problem.

#3 Re: Human missions » Space Elevators.....How Soon? » 2004-05-16 21:00:41

Why not have the US goverment pay for it? It's pretty cheap by their standards.

If  companies want to create their own space elevator they could use the public one to launch the initial ribbon (reducing the costs)

The value of the space elevator isn't just money made by lifting stuff up. It's how much is saved by using the space elevator rather then rockets.

#4 Re: Human missions » Space Elevators.....How Soon? » 2004-05-16 20:24:03

Take the total cost to deploy at multiply by 10%

Multiply it by 10%? Wow... maybe you meant add 10%, or multiply by 10? I'm guessing the latter.

#5 Re: Human missions » Space Elevators.....How Soon? » 2004-05-16 19:41:12

GCNRevenger, what's all this talk about an asteroid? The space elevator doesn't use an asteroid as a counter-weight.

Bill, I think you are underestimating the uses of a space elevator. For example it can be used to develop the Moon, and I mean really develop the Moon. You just start hauling equipment to the top of the ribbon and let go at the right time to get flung towards the Moon (Or Mars for that matter).

If you put a hotel at the top of the space elevator it would get "gravity". As you ascend the ribbon gravity will get less and less until you get to GEO (35,786 km) when it reaches about zero and the centripetal force balances out with the pull from Earth  (which is why GEO satellites don't fall back to Earth or go flying off into space). Now since the space elevator goes beyond GEO the centripetal force will start to overpower the gravity pull from the Earth increasing the higher you go up the ribbon. I can't remember at which height you would get gravity of 1g, it may be twice GEO but I'm not sure.

Oh, and personally I would like to enter the Earth atmosphere at a nice leisurely speed of 200km/h and not blasting in at 24,000km/h

-TrevorM

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