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There seem to be plenty of Asteroids in the Belt and Automated Nuclear Propulsion systems are obviously on the way but is that enough? Can we build a planet from the first rock up and achieve an ecosystem like earth?
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There seem to be plenty of Asteroids in the Belt and Automated Nuclear Propulsion systems are obviously on the way but is that enough? Can we build a planet from the first rock up and achieve an ecosystem like earth?
Yes, we can.
See: http://www.newmars.com/forums/viewtopic … ...1;t=101
and: ( but vice versa some of the scenarios) - http://www.livescience.com/technology/d … th_mp.html
Assuming the huge gravitational boubding energy of any modeate sized planetary mass object - it is non-profitable to dismantle a planet to create others. There is enough material beyond Neptune, but in the Main belt the total amount is less than one lunar mass. Actually also there are 4 ( four ) planets in the Main asteroid belt: 1 Ceres, 2 Palas, 4 Vesta and 10 Hygeia. All these bodies have sufficient gravity to ovecome the interatomic and intermolecular compression structure counterforce and to make themselves round. All others are ust pieces of ore, i.e. construction material.
See: http://www.google.com/url?sa=U&start=1& … ...&q=http
We could use some of them to provide Mars with a moon if this is proven to be necessary.
Also the planetary formation is consequence of the same process as star-fomation, the planets are just stabile condensations of the stellar formation`s accretion disk instabilities, no matter whether this is incremental planeesimal coalescence or direct collapse of clumps of mater in the disk. This is so ubiquitous process, that even happens in case of smaller central bodies of mini-stellar and sub-stellar origin:
- the gas giants
- http://www.google.com/url?sa=U&start=1& … ...&q=http
the consecquences of interplaneary splashes:
- the Moon ( http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Giant_Impa … act_theory ) and Pluto ( " Simulation work published in 2005 by Robin Canup suggested that Pluto's moon Charon could also have formed by a giant impact around 4.5 billion years ago, in this case by another Kuiper belt object between 1600 and 2000 kilometres in diameter that struck the planet at a speed of 1 kilometre per second. Canup speculated that this process of moon formation could have been common in the early solar system." )...
even around the neutron stars eventually planwts form from the supernova gas envelope fallbacks:
- http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/PSR_1257_p … 57_plus_12
In principle the Bock globules are perfect sites whic in infancy to catched and turned in designer planetary systems with designer central star.
The planetary construction ( up from zero ) is not mass efficient tech. Actually it is much better to construct rotating tube worlds - it takes dozens of tonnes of material per m2, not quadrillions as the case of the planets, and the stars are not the best fireplaces - finding way to fuse lighter elements in heavier is something that would run the stars obsolete, but some humans or [post-human could do it.
The way to do this?
- Self-replicating automata
or
- precision control of the chaotic processes in molecular clouds and planetesimal trajectories.
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Here is an idea I thought about while working on a science fiction story.
I believe there are many wandering worlds roaming interstellar space- worlds that have been cast out of their solar system by their siblings during close encounters.
If this is true, there could be countless worlds waiting for us. If we can figure how to move these worlds, we could do something like move an Earth Mass world into Mars orbit and make Mars its moon.
If we find ones loaded with valuable resourse, we could put them in orbit around Venus.
"Run for it? Running's not a plan! Running's what you do, once a plan fails!" -Earl Bassett
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Why bother, really? Exisiting planets and moons will keep us busy for awhile, if we're going to build something a hollow habitat makes more sense than a planet. Living on a sphere most of the mass is wasted, better to make it hollow and live in it. Finally, I'd have serious concerns about the sort of "cosmic billiards" required to build a planet and move into a livable orbit within our system.
If we get fast enough propulsion to move into other systems it makes even less sense, planets just aren't that rare.
Build a man a fire and he's warm for a day. Set a man on fire and he's warm for the rest of his life.
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Here is an idea I thought about while working on a science fiction story.
I believe there are many wandering worlds roaming interstellar space- worlds that have been cast out of their solar system by their siblings during close encounters.
If this is true, there could be countless worlds waiting for us. If we can figure how to move these worlds, we could do something like move an Earth Mass world into Mars orbit and make Mars its moon.
If we find ones loaded with valuable resourse, we could put them in orbit around Venus.
The planetary formation simulations show that, yes from the proto-stellar accretion disk form at least ten times more planets, that remain eventualy. Via gravitational slingshoting they either are pushed in the star or forming gas giants, or cast away in the Oort cloud and in free intestellar paths.
The theme is explored seriously:
http://www.google.com/search?hl=bg&q=in … ...son&lr=
and most probably it is true.
But why to waste so much energy to move them back again in the star systems, when even on interstellar distances of several light years, we have enough sun light to concentate it with mirrors, produced from insignificant part of the planet`s mass?
These interstellar planets are energy independent.
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Imagine one Earth-analog cast in the interstellar void - it has plenty of energy - enough to house earth-size biosphere and even hundreds of times bigger civilisation as the global one of ours for eons and eons:
- 1. the planet rotates and if the diurnal cycle is similar to ours ( depends on the formation planetesimals collisions and proto-planet`s mergers trajectories) it has about "For example, Earth has a large amount of rotational energy: at its equator, it moves at the speed of ~450 m/s, hence 100 kJ/kg. On average, if the Earth were homogeneous, 40% of that, hence 40 kJ/kg. Since the density is larger in the centre, the average specific rotational energy is a little less: roughly 33 kJ/kg, i.e. 2 × 1029 J (5 × 1013 Mt TNT). Compare with the kinetic energy of the orbital motion around the Sun: 450 MJ/kg." The axial rotation energy could be extracted using coupling with another "nearby" body for tidal power or simply via using skyhooks as slingshots...
- 2. Such planet will have also significant kinethic energy along its independent galactic orbital path. Extraction via momentum exchange with other bodies, or other interaction with the intertellar medium...
- 3. The "geothermal" -- the Earth contains the core with the size of the Moon and temperature of the Sun`s surface.
Even much smaller bodies ( Mars-size or Moon-size) have preserved significant part of this stockpile - ratational, orbital, "geo"thermal...
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