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About UsAs a result of the NASA Institute for Advanced Concepts (NIAC) research study of Earth's Space Elevator, the first 'space elevator company' was HighLift Systems. Because of a variety of factors (disagreements between the founders (Laine + Edwards) and funding, and a lack of follow-on support from NASA, and the Space Shuttle Columbia crashing) that pioneering company closed in 2003.
The first version of LiftPort started in 2003. And closed in 2007. A lot happened in between 2001-2007. We will detail part of that history in dedicated sections of our website. |
There was a bit of activity between 2011-2013, and again in 2015; mostly, this was centered around the "failed" Kickstarter effort. (We asked for $8000, and received $110,000. Despite that unexpectedly large number, it was a failure at every level.) This work focused - and all other work since then has focused - exclusively on the Lunar Space Elevator Infrastructure.
Finally, in 2017, we officially re-started LiftPort Group. It's been a quiet, small, 'stealth' effort up until now (Summer 2020). For the past three years, we've been a small, dedicated, team. We've been writing papers, and briefing docs. We've (mostly) written a book. (Our publisher is waiting patiently, for us to complete our contract with them.) We have rebuilt some of the bridges we burned when we closed. And we've built some new alliances.
More than anything, the story of LiftPort is a story of perseverance and a guiding belief that we have a role in taking humanity to our Moon, to the planets, and (eventually) to the stars.
LiftPort Group is dedicated to both of the ideas that 1) it is possible to build a Lunar Elevator with current technology and 2) that it will be vastly transformative for humanity.
Based in Tacoma, Washington, we are currently researching the material required for the Ribbon and the robotic technology required for the Lifters. It is our goal to build an Elevator on the Moon in order to improve life here on Earth.
It is a powerful thing; it is an unusual thing, to be both a 'cool' new start-up and to have nearly two decades of legacy, of history, of experience, of missteps, and of brilliance - to guide us on this journey. Perhaps it took 20 years of hindsight AND the necessary technological breakthroughs of the past score of years to enable the moment we are in, now.
Finally, in 2017, we officially re-started LiftPort Group. It's been a quiet, small, 'stealth' effort up until now (Summer 2020). For the past three years, we've been a small, dedicated, team. We've been writing papers, and briefing docs. We've (mostly) written a book. (Our publisher is waiting patiently, for us to complete our contract with them.) We have rebuilt some of the bridges we burned when we closed. And we've built some new alliances.
More than anything, the story of LiftPort is a story of perseverance and a guiding belief that we have a role in taking humanity to our Moon, to the planets, and (eventually) to the stars.
LiftPort Group is dedicated to both of the ideas that 1) it is possible to build a Lunar Elevator with current technology and 2) that it will be vastly transformative for humanity.
Based in Tacoma, Washington, we are currently researching the material required for the Ribbon and the robotic technology required for the Lifters. It is our goal to build an Elevator on the Moon in order to improve life here on Earth.
It is a powerful thing; it is an unusual thing, to be both a 'cool' new start-up and to have nearly two decades of legacy, of history, of experience, of missteps, and of brilliance - to guide us on this journey. Perhaps it took 20 years of hindsight AND the necessary technological breakthroughs of the past score of years to enable the moment we are in, now.
History
In 2001, NASA's Innovative Advanced Concepts program (NIAC) began researching the feasibility of constructing an Earth Elevator. In 2003, they published a report both stating that it was possible to build an Earth Elevator and outlining the many reasons to build one. Even so, NASA soon shifted their focus towards higher priority projects. Therefore, this report marked the conclusion of NASA’s involvement with the project and LiftPort was subsequently founded in 2003.
In the early days, we focused on developing and researching the robotics and carbon nanotubes that would be required to build an Earth Elevator. In 2006, we launched a proprietary observation and communication platform a full mile (1.6 km) in the air using balloons. We also developed robotic lifters to move up and down a large ribbon scaffolding we had designed to hang from the communication platform. This scale experiment was conducted in order to simulate some of the technology and techniques that would be applied to the elevator projects.
The Earth Elevator has not been built yet because of the ribbon; the scaffolding along which the lifters would travel. There is no material known to mankind yet that is strong enough to withstand the cosmic forces that will be acting on this ribbon. When the economy crashed in 2007 LiftPort collapsed with it, but the idea was kept alive by several nonprofits around the world.
In 2011 we had an epiphany and refocused our efforts on developing a Lunar Elevator because it can be built now, with current technology, and would transform our interaction with the moon, mars and the rest of space.
Humanity's Future
Today we are beginning the process of commercializing the intellectual property we have developed over the last 14 years. Our aim is to use a combination of internal revenue and externally invested capital to build a Lunar Elevator ; which has the potential to drastically improve life on Earth.
Currently, no company or country on Earth has a working rocket system capable of soft landing people on the Moon. If we are able to attach a satellite at the L1 Lagrange Point to the Moon via a ribbon, it would give the nations with capable rockets the ability to dock at the L1 station, access the Moon and its resources. Robots will be able to access the moon, mine it or collect other lunar assets, and return to the space station via ribbon. This would provide us with a safe, energy efficient means of accessing the moon which could ultimately lead to future lunar infrastructure development. We could begin creating habitats on the Moon, and testing long term space habitations and machinery for Mars missions. Lunar ice near the poles could be melted down into water for Moon pioneers, or into rocket fuel for future missions to Mars, the asteroid belt, and beyond. If rocket fuel can reliably be produced in space, the space station could function as a gas station, refueling space missions without them having to return to Earth. We would turn the Moon into a forward base for future space missions. Hotels and restaurants could be built on the Moon, meaning the first destination for Space Tourism would have a spectacular view in addition to a home base for further space excursions. We would also have a great opportunity to study the early solar system in the Moon's rocks and water, and observatories on the dark side of the Moon could tell us much about the Universe around us. Finally, this infrastructure will grant us the ability to build solar satellites and fields of solar panels on the moon with the goal of aiding with the global energy crisis. Energy could become a surplus.
No one can say for sure when an Earth Elevator will be ready for production; advancements in materials science need to be made first. There is some speculation that it may be easier to manufacture long strands of carbon nanotubes at the L1 point, where there are few forces acting on the carbon atoms. In contrast, the technology required to build a Lunar Elevator is available today.
