Macs In Space II

MasterOfDisaster writes: "Some nut is planning to make a global wireless network using apple's Power Macintosh G4 Cubes. Here's the story." We ran a story about this guy last year, but this one has a bit more detail and he's progressed further in his plans.

Comments

Solar wind will kill this thing

[Argyle]

The solar radiation will degrade the hard drive and RAM to the point of unusability. Long term solar radiation studies have shown that that extended exposure in orbit subjects electronics to solar storms and other destructive environments that harm non-shielded systems.

There are also the issues of microgravity and vacuum. Metals behave differently in orbit. Several communications satellites have failed because of the growth of zinc solenoids in the spacecraft in orbit. Plastics will outgas, changing their structure. The air trapped in the hardrive will exert a constant pressure on the seals holding it in, increasing the chance of hard drive failure. All the rules are different in space.

The temperature differential between the light and dark sides of the satellite are approx. 200 F. With all that thermal stress, all components will be mechanically stressed.

While I applaud this guys gung-ho spirit, I think he underestimates the harsh environment of space.
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