Getting high on the cheap...
by Sebastian Schumacher
Image: Chris Wren and Kenn Brown @ mondoart.net
When trying to leave the safety of our atmosphere, Gaia, always the overprotective mother, pits the full pull of her 5.97219 × 1024 kilogrammes of mass against our ambitions. This leads to the problem of an extremely high fuel-to-payload ratio (9:1) and astronomical fuel costs of up to 40,000 USD per kilogramme.
It may sound ridiculous, but a growing number of experts believe the solution to leaving “home” more easily lies not in rocket fuel, but in elevators. Ever since the limitations on architects’ early vertical ambitions were blown away by Elisha Otis’ introduction of the safety elevator in 1852, engineers have been expanding the idea, and now it is heading all the way into space.
The concept currently considered as the most plausible reduces the main structure to a high-tech cable – or ribbon. The system would consist of a platform in geostationary orbit above the equator, from which the ribbon would extend down earthwards to a floating anchor-station. If the properties of carbon nanotubes fulfil their promise (see uncube no.16), they could be woven into a 100,000 kilometre-long ribbon that would have the advantage of being enormously strong whilst weighing no more than 140,000 tonnes. For the development of the cabin there are already several competitions underway, such as the European Space Elevator Challenge, encouraging the development of different climber design concepts.
This whole system would have the potential benefit of reducing costs to 200 USD per kilogramme. It is therefore not surprising that NASA, ESA and a number of private ventures, such as the LiftPort Group, are investing in the idea, which means engineers can now move out of the crazy corner and start getting planning permissions for the next big leap forward in space exploration. I
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