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Palomar

Member

From: USA

Registered: 2002-05-30

Posts: 9,734

Re: Living Off Space Junk

http://www.space.com/businesstechnology … .html]Very interesting

Tons of "cosmic garbage" - mostly first stages jettisoned from Soyuz carrier rockets - have provided a vital economic boost to the impoverished villages surrounding the cosmodrome, including the main local town Mirny ("Peaceful").

Local adminstrators notify the citizenry several days prior to each launch; all "hunters, mushroom pickers, fishermen and reindeer breeders" are strongly advised to leave the dangerous area (yes, that's a quote). Within days, however, scores of local residents go looking for valuable spoils...

Mentions an old sci-fi classic "The Stars My Destination."  Will have to check that out; sounds intriguing.

And there's an SW reference as well.  :laugh:

Less damaged parts may be put to use in households; electric batteries are connected to lamps, sheets of stainless alloys are used to build basements, garages, and even long canoe-like boats.

--Cindy

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We all know [i]those[/i] Venusians: Doing their hair in shock waves, smoking electrical coronas, wearing Van Allen belts and resting their tiny elbows on a Geiger counter...

--John Sladek (The New Apocrypha)

SpaceNut

Administrator

From: New Hampshire

Registered: 2004-07-22

Posts: 28,960

Re: Living Off Space Junk

This is also the same area that was recently in the news for the rocket fuel contaimination, i think peculate something or other.

But the old saying is another mans junk is another mans treasure. I beleave that once we get over the hurdle of getting back into space that we need to learn how to reuse anything that we launch into space not just throw it away as it is done now.
If we recycle the rocket parts from all the soyuz or progress ships into a new built in orbit unit all that would be needed would to refuel the unit give it some oxygen for the crew and other consumables. We would be on our way in no time at all..

Palomar

Member

From: USA

Registered: 2002-05-30

Posts: 9,734

Re: Living Off Space Junk

But the old saying is another mans junk is another mans treasure.

*Says tons of debris falls over these villages.  Some examples were cited of what is done with the refuse.  I'm curious as to what sorts of artistry the good folks in the area utilize to turn some parts of space junk into ... well ... works of art (or along those lines).  They may be poor but likely highly creative, especially as folk art goes (which can also be incorporated into daily living -- functionality).

Stuff like this makes me curious!    (More so than I already normally am, ha ha).

--Cindy

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We all know [i]those[/i] Venusians: Doing their hair in shock waves, smoking electrical coronas, wearing Van Allen belts and resting their tiny elbows on a Geiger counter...

--John Sladek (The New Apocrypha)

SpaceNut

Administrator

From: New Hampshire

Registered: 2004-07-22

Posts: 28,960

Re: Living Off Space Junk

Being that these people are way out in the country, they probably still rely on blacksmithing and metalurgy trades.

Would be interesting to see what does get made from the metals.

Almost sounds like if you fix the ""little-damaged Soyuz first stages. Souyz carrier rockets which are propelled by kerosene and oxygen" " that these rocket stages once you add a capsule and electronics; you could launch it one more time, if you had a pad to do it from.

Palomar

Member

From: USA

Registered: 2002-05-30

Posts: 9,734

Re: Living Off Space Junk

Being that these people are way out in the country, they probably still rely on blacksmithing and metalurgy trades.

Would be interesting to see what does get made from the metals.

*Wouldn't it truly be "full circle" if horse shoes are cobbled out of rocket debris??  :laugh:

--Cindy

::EDIT:: 

Almost sounds like if you fix the ""little-damaged Soyuz first stages. Souyz carrier rockets which are propelled by kerosene and oxygen" " that these rocket stages once you add a capsule and electronics; you could launch it one more time, if you had a pad to do it from.

:hm:  Maybe dicktice will chime in and comment.  He knows a lot about Soyuz.

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We all know [i]those[/i] Venusians: Doing their hair in shock waves, smoking electrical coronas, wearing Van Allen belts and resting their tiny elbows on a Geiger counter...

--John Sladek (The New Apocrypha)

srmeaney

Member

From: 18 tiwi gdns rd, TIWI NT 0810

Registered: 2005-03-18

Posts: 976

Re: Living Off Space Junk

The Stars My Destination

Read it. Apart from some interesting moments where He's surviving on board a wrecked space ship, the "Hero" is about on par with Darth Vader. Frankly I thought he would wind up eating the dead crew if he hadn't been rescued.