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Space Elevator Teams Compete for NASA Prizes
Hugh Pickens writes "The University of Saskatchewan's has the first place climb in the Second Annual Space Elevator Games being held this weekend at the Davis County Event Center in Salt Lake City. Teams are competing for $1,000,000 in NASA prize money. Although the idea of a space elevator has been around for decades, the space technologies needed to support it have yet to be created. The non-profit Spaceward Foundation has hosted an annual competition since 2005 to build a super-strong tether, or get a robot to climb a suspended ribbon. In the robot climber competition, teams have to get their device to hurtle up a 100-metre-long ribbon, suspended from a crane, at an average speed of two metres per second. The climber must be powered from the ground: strategies include reflecting sunlight from huge mirrors on the ground to solar panels on the climber; shining lasers from the ground up to similar panels on the robot; or firing microwaves up at the climber. Qualifying rounds have been taking place all week, and although high winds and rain have caused delays, four out of eight teams have made it into the finals. There are no outdoor climbs today because of bad weather but some of the tether competitions will happen indoors later this afternoon."
This gives a whole new meaning to "leaking gas on the elevator"
find -name "*base*" -exec chown us {} \; ; ln -s
WILLIAMSBURG DOESN'T NEED A SPACE ELEVATOR! The Space Elevator Will Mean: Less Parking, Weird Ribbon Thing, Constant Loud Whirring Noise, Increased Space Elevator Truck Traffic. Developers have submitted plans to build a massive space elevator in Williamsburg! This monstrosity, completely out of context with existing development in the neighborhood, will be accessible only to the wealthy, forcing thousands of average Williamsburgers from their homes and live-work spaces! Jobs the elevator will generate (operators, repairmen, astronauts) are certain to go to non-residents! Don't sit idly by and let this elevator cast its impossibly long, cold, and very narrow shadow over our homes! CALL 311 AND TELL THEM 'I JUST DON'T NEED THIS SPACE ELEVATOR!'
roll her over and try the other side.
Do you even lift?
These aren't the 'roids you're looking for.
Meesa wanna haul fuelsa insteada payload. Takesa twicea longa!
If you were blocking sigs, you wouldn't have to read this.
Given that the materials required to make them are completely conjectural, you can imagine any conductivity you like. From all the sparkling, I think that fairy wings must be pretty conductive, so let's make space elevators out of them.
If you were blocking sigs, you wouldn't have to read this.
Mod's are going to murder me for that one....
...
I couldn't find the (-1 Murder) mod
Nah, that tastes like crap.
I think I speak for all of Slashdot when I say yes, we really could -- and thanks for bringing up such a painful subject.
I don't care if it's 90,000 hectares. That lake was not my doing.
I'll second your pessimism. There's really only one real scientific challenge, and that's the tether. We're an order of magnitude from the required strength, and meeting the required strength may well be *physically* impossible. Most economically viable designs call for 100-120GPa tethers with the density of graphite. Yet the strongest *inividual* SWNTs measured so far are only 60 GPa, let alone the strength of tube bundles, let alone the strength of a mass-produceable fiber. And what sort of stronger bonding structure do people expect to find than graphene's SP2s?
These little "space elevator" contests and companies that address everything but the tether always amuse me. I always picture something like:
"Good news, everyone! Progress on my 'Teleportation Shoes' has been proceeding wonderfully. We've developed a shoelace that fits into the loops perfectly. The insoles have been rated as "quite comfortable", and while the rubber for the heel has been stalled by supply problems, we're certain we can get these resolved shortly.
Teleportation will be addressed at a later time."
Son, a woman is a lot like a refrigerator. They're six feet tall, 300 pounds... they make ice... umm...