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Thoughts on the Space Elevator

Posted by ScuttleMonkey on from the no-such-thing-as-an-inefficient-government dept.

Keith Curtis writes to tell us that Glenn Reynolds, of Instapundit fame, has posted his thoughts on why NASA should be building a space elevator instead or their current plans. Keith has also posted his throughts from an engineer's perspective (although admittadly still not a rocket scientist). "The challenges are many, but it has been a viable option since carbon nanotubes, structures so strong that one the width of a human hair could lift a car, were invented. A space elevator could be between 10 and 2000 times cheaper than conventional technology and will force NASA to change just about everything they do. Hopefully one day that bureaucracy will wake up and realize it."

7 of 622 comments (clear)

  1. Musak by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Funny

    Yeah but who wants to listen to that god awful music?

    1. Re:Musak by Crash+McBang · · Score: 5, Funny

      You get used to it after the first 5,000 floors...

      --
      To put a witty saying into 120 characters, jst rmv ll th vwls.
    2. Re:Musak by fermion · · Score: 4, Funny
      not to mention the movie and safety talk. I think Red Dwarf said it best

      Welcome to Xpress Lifts, descent to floor sixteen. You will be going down two thousand, five hundred and sixty-seven floors and, for a small extra charge, you can enjoy the in-lift movie 'Gone With the Wind'. If you look to your right and to your left, you will notice there are no exits. In the highly unlikely event of the lift having to make a crash-landing, death is certain. Under your seats you will find a cassette for recording your last-minute testament, and from above your head a bag will drop containing sedatives and cyanide capsules.

      I would think the biggest issue would be safety. Two shuttle breakups in 15 some odd years is bad enough, but what will be required when we really have the promised trip to space every week.

      --
      "She's a scientist and a lesbian. She's not going to let it slide." Orphan Black
  2. Doom and gloom by millisa · · Score: 5, Funny

    I like the idea of the space elevator . . . but won't it be a prime target for terrorist attacks? I mean, if I was a terrorist, it'd be the first place I'd direct my hijacked pla . . . moment, there's a knock at my door.

  3. That's one small step for man... by Chysn · · Score: 5, Funny

    ...one giant leap for the first wise ass to press all the buttons (Troposphere, Stratosphere, Mesosphere, Thermosphere, Exosphere...) and piss off the other astronauts.

    --
    --I'm so big, my sig has its own sig.
    -- See?
  4. Re:Space elevator musac? by Herkum01 · · Score: 4, Funny

    Led Zeppelin's "Stairway to Heaven"! :)

  5. Re:I dont get it... by cephyn · · Score: 4, Funny

    You make a good point. nanotube based teleporters would be faster and more cost-effective than a space elevator!

    I say we put $12bn or so into nanotube powered teleporters. who's with me!?

    --
    Moo.