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Essay on The Space Elevator: Science Fiction to Science Fact

Decent Essays

In the recent century what used to be science fiction is quickly becoming a reality. Things like the space shuttle, super computers and robots are coming out of Hollywood and into the real world. The most recent projection is the space elevator project. It consists of a 62,000 mile long cable elevator to the stars. This project which was previously believed to be impossible and absurd is now on the fast track to success. This recent success can be attributed to both new technological developments and the fact that project barriers are being demolished. First and foremost, when you decide to build something this size, in the most extreme environment possible, you must select your primary construction materials very carefully. In the case …show more content…

This system allowed the climber to be powered from a great distance without cords or a power source on the climber itself. This allows the climber to avoid using any sort of rocket propulsion and direct it to a specific lifting mechanism.
Although the Space Elevator will not make trips to space faster, it will make trips to space more frequent and it will open up space to a new era of development. Perhaps the biggest factor propelling the idea of a space elevator is that it would significantly lower the cost of putting cargo into space. Although slower than the chemically propelled space shuttle, the lifters reduce launch costs from $10,000 to $20,000 per pound, to approximately $400 per pound. This dramatic drop of expense required to traverse space would finally allow private investors to invest in a new area, known as “space production”. For example, titanium produced in earth’s environment has a maximum tensile strength of 200,000 psi but in the zero gravity of space “in theory” the tensile strength of titanium can be increased to over 500,000 psi. In addition, titanium will be much easier to manipulate in space thereby giving rise to new applications—with double strength.
Moreover, in the far distant future the elevator can also potentially be used to rid the earth of toxic waste by removing it from our planet. Once again, hypothetically, this has the potential to give large corporations all the “space” they need to build massive

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