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#1 2023-04-26 02:14:28

Calliban
Member
From: Northern England, UK
Registered: 2019-08-18
Posts: 3,352

Orbital Rings

Project Atlantis is about creating orbital rings that provide energy storage, low-cost surface to surface transportation and cheap access to space.  The ring appears to be a steel cable that is accelerated to orbital velocity in an evacuated tube.  It is tethered to ground by a carbon fibre cable.
https://m.youtube.com/@spaceinfrastructure3238

Whilst this is an interesting idea, the cost of building it will be high.  It will need to pass through the airspace of multiple countries and over large stretches of open ocean.  It would also appear to be vulnerable to single point failure.  An aircraft collision with the ring at any point, would bring it down all over the world.


"Plan and prepare for every possibility, and you will never act. It is nobler to have courage as we stumble into half the things we fear than to analyse every possible obstacle and begin nothing. Great things are achieved by embracing great dangers."

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#2 2023-04-26 06:10:50

tahanson43206
Moderator
Registered: 2018-04-27
Posts: 16,752

Re: Orbital Rings

For Calliban re new topic.

Best wishes for success with this interesting new topic!

I'm looking forward to discussion as members have time to consider the idea.  It might work particularly well in service at an airless body such as the Moon.

It sounds similar to a proposal by Jim Cline in 2011 or so.

I'll be opening the link you provided later today.

(th)

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