When you think about futuristic alternatives to rockets, odds are good you think of space elevators. However, space elevators have some show stopping problems.
Mostly, it's our inability (at present) to manufacture sufficiently large, contiguous sheets of carbon that are flawless down to the atomic scale to create a strong enough tether.
However, if we don't build the tether straight up and down, then the materials don't have to be so strong. If we make it hollow and exploit vactrain principles (similar to hyperloop) then we can accelerate a maglev train type vehicle inside to escape velocity.
Enter: the Launch Loop. Also known as the god damn SPACE TRAIN (pyrotechnics go off, metal solo plays).
Perhaps that sounds absurd and fantastical, but it's an accurate descriptor. The launch loop is essentially a maglev vactrain, a more advanced form of hyperloop. Most of it just stays in orbit via centrifugal force.
Now, this requires building the track in orbit and lowering one end carefully to Earth, but the same would be required to establish the tether for a space elevator. The two technologies, being very similar, have similar problems.
If it sounds like a terrifyingly precarious operation, it absolutely would be. But crucially, it's within our capabilities with modern day materials and technologies. The astronomically high price is the only meaningful barrier to building such a marvel.
Once constructed, it would represent a permanent, drastic reduction in the cost per pound to reach low Earth orbit. As they say, once you're in orbit, you're halfway to anywhere, simply because most of any spacecraft's energy is wasted climbing out of Earth's gravity well.
With that burdensome obstacle forever overcome, humanity would have cheap and easy access to space. There would almost no longer be a financial case for building large spacecraft or space stations from asteroid ore simply because of how cheaply and easily metals could be sent from Earth.
That depends enormously on how distant from Earth a proposed project would be constructed, but for projects in LEO, the launch loop would present a better value proposition than building from space resources due to the fuel cost of delivering them to Earth orbit from the asteroid belt.
That should give some sense of just what a remarkable, transformative difference a launch loop would make to the economic dimension of human space exploration. Best of all, it's technologically achievable right now. We need only the political will, and to convince politicians that an idea as absurd on the face of it as a launch loop can really be built.
Stay Cozy!
sure, I am very confident that this would really be of tremendous assistance technologically
Hi, I found some acronyms/abbreviations in this post. This is how they expand:
This is a huge one i must say, but its definitely gonna be achievable...
Dont mind me,
you just gotta love the airwaves.. dont mind me, I'm a huge fan of spaceships, aircrafts, infact anything technological. hahahaha
"We need only the political will, and to convince politicians that an idea as absurd on the face of it as a launch loop can really be built".
Yeah @alexbeyman ,you are right..! The poltical interference is very much important for such ideas to accomplish...there are number of cases of spaceshuttle failure, and tge fact is that the most of them are due to material failure...to devise a material compitable for space shuttle programs is of top priority and it can save the life of an astronaut too..like the use of carbon material and much more. ...
Great workk and idea too... Thanks
It looks like I am reading some language at which I am not good, these space rockets suck, a lot of science behind them, I am glad that you know something about them
Woahh what the hell on earth is that... Mind blowing ...
Interesting write up... A mind improver actually. Never new most of the space ship energy is spent overcoming Earths gravity. Thanks for the Info bro.
I look at that 3d render and wonder what would happen if even a smallish storm swept over it. What kind of vibrations would the structure face? Bridges we build today have to account for swaying and fluttering. I can't imagine a project as massive as a space elevator or a launch loop, cool as they may sound, wouldn't run into some major issues like that.
Christ, I can only imagine how I'd feel getting on something like that. Airplanes terrify me as is, I'd probably have to get absolutely shit faced to be even moderately calm getting into that. It's a super fucking cool idea/design, though.
Also, I'm glad to see that your payouts are consistently staying to around $11 or more now. Hope it continues to pick back up so you can get where you were a few months ago, bro.
A lot of that is vote bots.
Ah, yeah, I've been in the same boat for a minute, man. Well, hopefully it helps you out in the long run, bro. Crypto has been pretty fucked up the past 3-4 months :/
Random question for you, do you drink at all?
Great post. It would take a huge amount of effort to see it through, but people have done huge projects ever since the pyramids!
I think we need visionaries to fund this sort of thing and sadly those kind of people tend not to be in government anymore. I think we will have to wait for someone like Elon Musk to give it visibility like the Hyperloop concept.
I am always weak in Physics and i didn't get anything except that there is some space train invented.;)
Two technologies pacing the development of the space elevator are an ultra-strong space tether and other space elevator components, and lightweight solar cells. The space elevators are quite far from reality but could be possible in the future after people stop laughing about it.
In some ways the launch loop is even more ridiculous sounding than a space elevator...yet, unlike the space elevator, the launch loop is already possible to build with today's materials.
Sure the launch loop is made possible already, it's made of a long tube joined at the ends. It also reduces the costs of spaceflight. Still lot to do and make things possible.
Nice post,
The keyword that we must understand is the importance of our ability with modern materials and technology.
Further political will from the government to realize those expectations.
Almost in all countries including Indonesia is the toughest constraint faced, where the government's political attitude is less support as you write. If this has not been done then hope will be dashed.
Australia may be slightly different from Indonesia.
so, from me.
regard
SpaceX is reducing greatly the cost of rocket launches. Perhaps the right answer for Indonesia to have a space program is to pay SpaceX to launch payloads into orbit for them?
this is a good idea. you are talking today about rocket launch with x space tool. a new technology. I think Indonesia needs to work with Australia on this issue.
hopefully there is a program like this in indonesia and can take advantage of spaceX
Looks like it could be worth a shot if we need to get an extreme amount of payload into orbit like in the far future when humanity wants to settle Mars or something.
one of the reasons why i am greatly looking forward to it
Thanks for sharing @alexbeyman
Many beautiful posts
Great to read about this new idea.
I will say its a great alternatives to rocket.
But every thing has pros and cons..it will expensive and what if dropped back to earth and making a huge disaster.
Would be a cheap and easy way to space.. But how could we give it the escape velocity it needs..
Even getting to low earth orbit requires reaching a speed of 7 km/s and the hyperloop project is proposed to be able to reach only a fraction of that.
love you steemit
The crapitalusts only hold us back because we accept their chains.
Keep working, stop paying.
I'm really amazed as to how technology advances. Mehn, I'm waiting for when there will be cheap and ease access to the space. Maybe I would use that :D.
Nice piece
Alex - This is the 1st time I understood people's imaginary are far away from reality... Space trains... OMG they have concepts for it... Nice you decided to discuss it...
+W+
A developed country is not because of abundant natural resources but can take advantage of advances in technology that is constantly evolving, this article is very unusual for a Country. Thank you my brother
This is really interesting. Thank you for sharing.
Lemme just get my buddy Elon on the phone...
Who cares about the space trains!
As a god, I can shatter the void and move to any place, pff, mortals.
I saw proposals for an Apollo-style mission from Earth to Mars: a single giant rocket launches everything in one launch. ... The only way to make space cheap is by having the power source separate from the rocket/payload (gun, mass driver, loop, skyhook, tractor beam)
In space travel is very efficient. I think building mulitple space elevators should be much cheaper than building this space train. So you could maybe just organise flights from the space elevator platforms on a non-track system.
In terms of citations it might be good idea to mention the inventor of the space train: James Powell wiki. Apparently, he has named it spacetram.
I'm glad you brought up the political will part. Our governments seem more interested in using their vast resources to keep the masses under their thumb or go to war.
A project like this might actually open the final frontier up to a new pioneer generation that could escape the systems of control down on earth.