13-05-2014, 04:57 PM
SPACE ELEVATOR
SPACE ELEVATOR.ppt (Size: 708 KB / Downloads: 29)
What is a Space Elevator?
Rope attached to the Earth near the equator which extends directly into space and is attached to a small counterweight in geostationary orbit
Will be able to transfer materials and eventually humans into space for much cheaper than it costs now
Why Does the Tether Stay Up?
Because the force of gravity at the bottom and the upward/outward centrifugal force at the top compete keeping the rope taut
The Tether
Will be made of 22,000 mile long carbon nanotube strands because it is currently the only option which has the proper strength and is light enough
Will need to be wider at geosynchronous altitude where it will experience the most stress and taper down as it approaches earth
Elevator vs. Rocket
While rockets will undoubtedly improve greatly in efficiency there is a limit to how efficient they can become
The elevator will be the next step
Cost to build it
The space elevator will be the longest structure ever built but it will be simple
Estimated cost to build the space elevator is about $10 billion
Approximate cost of building a space shuttle is about 1.7 billion and it costs about $450 million per mission
Endeavor completed 25 missions before being retired
Conclusion
The future of space travel
Would set us on the path towards expanding our space exploration to places might never reach relying solely on rockets
Philip Ragan, co-author of the book "Leaving the Planet by Space Elevator", states that "The first country to deploy a space elevator will have a 95 percent cost advantage and could potentially control all space activities."