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October 07, 2008, 12:27:24 PM *
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91  General Topics / News & Commentary / Re: Satellite repair rebot satellites on: August 27, 2007, 08:30:49 AM
The launch pricing formula I keep suggesting is:
Year 1 - Half the price of a rocket launch + cost of climber.
Year 2 - (Full year 1 costs / payload launched in year 1) * payload mass + cost of climber + increase due to inflation + 10% profit

Year n - (Full year n-1 costs / payload launched in year n-1) * payload mass + cost of climber + increase due to inflation + 10% profit

Loan repayments and interest are part of the costs.  As LiftPort's costs go down the price charged goes down.
The price per kg may not be linear to allow for the extra time between large launches.
92  General Topics / News & Commentary / Re: Satellite repair rebot satellites on: August 27, 2007, 08:18:32 AM
That money analysis often applies to startup technology. A profit in the first ten years often depends on rapid expansion, such as building 5 or 6 space elevators in the first ten years. Investors typically are confident, unless we stop expanding.   Neil

If the first space elevator is making a profit after the second year of operations the investors will be even more confident.  The directors can then decide whether to expand or not.
93  General Topics / News & Commentary / Re: Solar Shade - Global Warming on: August 27, 2007, 08:04:56 AM
Trains are best for long journeys between cities.

There may be a place for electric bikes within cities.  People will have to be certain that the batteries will not go flat.  A 10 mile commute needs say 30 to 40 miles between charges. 
94  General Topics / News & Commentary / Re: Solar Shade - Global Warming on: August 26, 2007, 05:14:04 AM
The safety results rely on most people not using their bicycles.
95  General Topics / Fighting Words / Re: The elephant in the room on: August 22, 2007, 09:02:41 AM
The concept of the space elevator is to offer a cheaper, more reliable means of leaving the earth's atmosphere.  If we still have to use a rocket system to leave the earth's gravity to get to an elevator, then we should not even bother with this project. 

CNT with sufficient strength to make the space elevator does not exist at the moment.

If you wish to build a cheap way of getting into space starting in the next 2 years produce a  prototype Aerovator with 10 GPa glass fibre able to launch 2 metric tons.  Start with a model 100 m across to debug the equipment which can then be filmed to show investors and customers.

Write a plan showing:
1.Where you are going to get the money.
2.Possible build locations including political control.
3.Prepare a list of possible customers.
4.Prepare detailed technical and management plans.
5.Plan and produce the working model.
6.Draw up a list of suppliers for the prototype - glass fibre, motors/aircraft and base.
7.How much you are going to pay Andreas Windemut for his idea.
96  General Topics / Fighting Words / Re: The elephant in the room on: August 21, 2007, 10:03:13 AM
CNT may not be sufficiently strong to make a space elevator but Kevlar and its rivals can be made into a rotating tether.

I believe that Aggregated Diamond Nanorods have the strength to make a 100km tall tower that the tether can sit on.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aggregated_diamond_nanorods

Then there is Windemut's machine.
97  Research / Pre-Cursor Technologies / Re: Mars jet engine on: August 18, 2007, 04:10:42 AM
Magnesium can be extracted by melting the Mars rocks and electrolysis.  The power source would probably be sun light.  Mirrors can be used to concentrate the sunlight on to the crucible to melt the ore and onto the solar cells to generate the electricity.  Distillation may form part of the refining process.  Fortunately efficient is a relative term.
98  Research / Pre-Cursor Technologies / Mars jet engine on: August 18, 2007, 02:08:29 AM
Wickman Spacecraft & Propulsion Company is working on a jet engine able to work on Mars.  This would simplify moving around the planet and may permit the matching of speed with a space tether.
http://www.space-rockets.com/marsjet.html

For fuel the motor uses magnesium and carbon dioxide as the oxidising agent.
99  Research / Financial / Re: Price of balloon tether? on: August 16, 2007, 07:55:54 AM
{snip}The other hold up, is cheap balloons leak hydrogen and helium, so they can only stay at 20 kilometers or more for a few days. Big low leakage balloons are still quite costly.   Neil

The parts of a climber robot able to top up the balloons will need designing.  The final design will need to know the exact shape of the ribbon.
100  Contests / Newsletter Contests / Re: Pizza on: August 14, 2007, 03:59:23 PM
What they don't deliver? Grin

They soon will.  Until then the the food will be cooked by the sexy stewardess in her miniskirt.

Quote
But seriously, the centrifugal oven idea sounds good, but it seems that it would only be needed at a GEO level station. It would be easy enough to keep the pizza from curling by putting it in a deep-dish pan.

The most efficient way to heat the oven, would be with a big parabolic mirror. Maybe it could even use molten salt to store heat for night-time cooking.
{snip}

There is plenty of electrical energy to power the oven.  The oven + kettle + tv + lights stc. only come to about 10% of the power used by the motor.

The parabolic mirror may be useful on other types of spaceships.
101  Research / The Ribbon / Re: 32 GPa graphene oxide paper on: August 14, 2007, 03:15:23 AM
The full oxide of carbon is carbon dioxide with carbon monoxide there is a free bond.

Pure graphene
C-C-C-C-C-C-C-C-C-C-C-C-C-C-C

C-C-C-C-C-O gap  O-C-C-C-C-C
with oxide
102  Research / The Ribbon / Re: 32 GPa graphene oxide paper on: August 13, 2007, 05:34:50 PM
If it can be made stronger than Kevlar, it could be useful for an inflatable SE.
It is not.  That is what the "Opps" means.
103  Achieving the Space Elevator / Science & Technology / Re: FAQ -- Frequently Asked Questions on: August 13, 2007, 12:01:09 AM
Unfortunately since air had density it has weight.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Density_of_air

At standard ambient temperature and pressure (25 °C and 100 kPa), dry air has a density of ρSATP = 1.168 kg/m3.

This means that every cubic metre weights 1.168 kg, more if you increase the pressure.  Putting a big tower on top of it will cause a big increase in pressure.
104  Research / Political / Re: Afraid of Nationalization? - go International on: August 11, 2007, 08:05:55 PM
A man made space mountain could have an electric mountain train to lift cargoes to the top.  Place a rotating sling on the top and you can launch satellites and spacecraft.
105  Achieving the Space Elevator / Science & Technology / Re: FAQ -- Frequently Asked Questions on: August 10, 2007, 10:47:38 PM
If friction is a bigger drag than gravity, then make the pipe fatter.

Do not forget that you are weight limited.  If you exceed your maximum mass you need a different plan.  So always estimate the weight.
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