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Eli
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Israel
Jul 2000
time: 07:37
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I think the elevator idea is just too crazy for policy makers to accept. That, of course, sucks.
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DRoseDARs
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"My god, it's full of peas..."
Jul 2002
time: 21:37
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God, not this again. 
Yes it's possible to build but no it's unlikely to be done anytime soon. Politics, finances, and the actual science to build the thing aren't up-to-par yet. Also, the danger it poses should it fall down/deorbit (physically anchored/magnetically anchored) is FAR too great a risk. Accident, sabotage ... doesn't matter. The damage, the death toll, and the ecological devastation will be the same. Earth isn't ready for one. Luna? Mars? Sure, but we can't risk it here.
Sn00py:
I believe its length has to do with its projected mass, Earth's gravitational pull, Erath's rotational speed at the anchor point, and trying to balance all that out to keep the massive thing in orbit. Any shorter would bring it crashing down, any longer would send it flying off into deep space. When KSR did the research for his book series, he postulated that if a sizeable mass were added to the orbital end of such an elevator, such as an asteroid, then the elevator would have enough mass to allow for a shorter length and hence a lower orbit. In the books, all of Mars' and Earth's elevators were formed from asteroids taken from the Belt; their mass was chosen because after the cable itself was built enough mass would be left over to form the counterweight of the elevator. This is simple an extension of the same principle of counterbalancing the weight in modern building elevators.
From what I've read, the scientists proposing this project are not utilizing any meaningful counterweight at the orbital end of their elevator, hence its length. That may be their way of dealing/avoiding the debris found at lower orbits.
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DRoseDARs
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"My god, it's full of peas..."
Jul 2002
time: 21:37
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I don't agree that we should do it just to see if we can. I'm sure we can (given enough effort and will to make the effort) and I'm sure the involved scientists are sensitive to the risks, but I'm convinced the risk is far too great given Humans only live on Earth and collectively we don't seem to care (witness endless conflict and developement of better ways of killing, both technologically and strategically). Depending on the mass of the cable itself, there might be enough of it crashing down to be equivalent to an asteroid impact, devastating the global ecosystem and threatening our survival. If the mass is smaller, there'd still be the risk of tsunamis in both the Pacific, Atlantic, and Indian oceans, wide spread land-based damage through South America, equatorial Africa, possibly southern India, and Indonesia. This proposed cable is 2.5 times longer the the Earth's circumference at the Equator. If it were to come down, it'd wrap around Earth 2.5 times, probably a bit more since the Earth-bound end of it might be dragged along for a bit.
I just don't see the benefits of a Terran elevator out-weighing the risks posed by said elevator. There are overall safer means of getting into space that can serve our needs until it's safe to build a space elevator here. At the very least, wait to build a Terran elevator until we've established ourselves elsewhere sustainably. I'm convinced that that's do-able before the end of this century; I'm willing to venture that that's do-able before mid-century.
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Odin
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Biology Nerd at Minnesota State University Moorhead
Sep 2000
time: 23:37
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quote:
Originally posted by DRoseDARs
I don't agree that we should do it just to see if we can. I'm sure we can (given enough effort and will to make the effort) and I'm sure the involved scientists are sensitive to the risks, but I'm convinced the risk is far too great given Humans only live on Earth and collectively we don't seem to care (witness endless conflict and developement of better ways of killing, both technologically and strategically). Depending on the mass of the cable itself, there might be enough of it crashing down to be equivalent to an asteroid impact, devastating the global ecosystem and threatening our survival. If the mass is smaller, there'd still be the risk of tsunamis in both the Pacific, Atlantic, and Indian oceans, wide spread land-based damage through South America, equatorial Africa, possibly southern India, and Indonesia. This proposed cable is 2.5 times longer the the Earth's circumference at the Equator. If it were to come down, it'd wrap around Earth 2.5 times, probably a bit more since the Earth-bound end of it might be dragged along for a bit.
I just don't see the benefits of a Terran elevator out-weighing the risks posed by said elevator. There are overall safer means of getting into space that can serve our needs until it's safe to build a space elevator here. At the very least, wait to build a Terran elevator until we've established ourselves elsewhere sustainably. I'm convinced that that's do-able before the end of this century; I'm willing to venture that that's do-able before mid-century. |
That happened to the Mars cable in Red Mars when the anti-corporate rebels send the counterbalancing asteroid flying. 
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26-06-2004 20:07
)
. I'd be scared shitless the whole time 
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