Have you seen how much energy and money gets wasted in simply sending a rocket up into space? Planning for the long term is all what orbital elevators are even about.
It looks cool. It's like having that ominous castle in the mountains from old tales where the evil wizard/town rapist lives, except on a futuristic setting.
My favorite Orbital Elevator has to be the Atlas from Front Mission: Gun Hazard, because of the presentation: right from the intro you're presented with the idea that the new reactors Wanzers and other vehicles are currently using are so efficient the huge tower built by several countries (in Greenland, for some reason) became obsolete and sits there abandoned.
Was the only purpose they could imagine for easing access to space travel that it'd make for more efficient fuel sourcing or something? That's kind of silly. There's a shit ton of mining that you could do if getting things into and back from space is that easy, for one thing. Which would create support jobs in basically every industry all on it's own.
Making a perfect 36km long cable with exotic materials is hard. Realistically, we're more likely to use skyhooks to fill that role for the next century or two.
The longest we can make individual carbon nanotubes so far is about half a meter, and the longest we can make sections of them together is only about 14 centimeters since putting them together creates imperfections one long one won't have. We are a long, long way from one that can stretch all the way into space (whatever height that's deemed to be for the sake of the cable). I'm pretty sure I recall reading something about how even carbon nanotubes may not actually be strong enough to withstand the stresses either, despite people's expectations.
the first people who go to Mars are going to ensure nobody tries to go to Mars again, and not in the cool Gundam way where they create a distinct nation, in the "wow, they died fricking horribly from something we cannot prevent" way
I'm pretty sure if the first people that go to Mars die a horrible, slow death by decay that it'd just make some people want to go their and tame it even harder.
Single-crystal graphene actually has more tensible strength than carbon nanotubes and is significantly easier to make, since you don't need to "grow" it. There are companies which can make around 2 meters per minute and each roll can have up to one kilometer in length. It really depends on having a machine that can make a ridiculously large roll while perfectly maintaining quality.
https://www.nasa.gov/sites/default/files/atoms/files/space_portal_nixene_publishing.pdf
They're a cool piece of speculative sci-fi. If one were to exist, it would result in a complete paradigm shift in the way the world views space travel. Cheap, safe, regularly scheduled space travel would be the most important technology in history so far.
Making a perfect 36km long cable with exotic materials is hard. Realistically, we're more likely to use skyhooks to fill that role for the next century or two.
i saw Turn A but don't really remember that being explained. so it's like the skyhooks from uh bioshock infinite except instead of a human it's a ship. i'm not that engineering smart but an orbital elevator seems safer.
>it's like the skyhooks from uh bioshock infinite
Well, no. Those are just glorified zip-lines. >i'm not that engineering smart but an orbital elevator seems safer
A space elevator would be ideal, but currently there's no material that could be used to make the tether. Even if carbon nanotubes or graphene are strong enough to do it, we need to make a perfect cable over 36000 Km long with the stuff. For comparsion, we can't even make more than a few centimeters of CNT, so space elevators are going to stay in the science fiction for at least another century.
2 years ago
Anonymous
can you do it in 40 years instead? i'll add it to my calendar.
>muh zero sum gaymz
None of those things were going to happen regardless of how much time and money was burned trying to pursue them, or how much (You) cry over them.
Musk might’ve convinced you with his Sachiko memes that going to Mars is easier than QoL improvements, but moving into space without first raising all of us up on Earth is how movements like Zeon were able to thrive at all.
the first people who go to Mars are going to ensure nobody tries to go to Mars again, and not in the cool Gundam way where they create a distinct nation, in the "wow, they died fricking horribly from something we cannot prevent" way
Improving the QoL of the scum of the Earth endangers the status quo in ways that a pie-in-the-actual-sky vanity project never will. Nobody who matters cares enough to object to sending humans to Mars. Contrast that with more people earning a living fighting GMO crops than there are people trying to make GMO crops. The poor MUST suffer. Human Martians won't keep a single child under 5 from dying and that's the only reason it might happen.
yeah and what we are gonna do with it? launch like 10 tiny satellites into space? let some billionaire see space? right now threes simply no need for it space elevators only start making making sense when theres need for mass import and export of stuff into and out of space like in greco
You start the mass import and export after the space elevator makes it cheap, duh.
Not that anon, but I imagine the difference is you suggested it as a "there's no point even thinking about doing so until after one has been built", with the implication it can't be done until a specific use case that requires that kind of mass import and export is known and desired and the other anon meant "why not just build it and start mass import and export using it because some kind of mass import and export is going to exist if the infrastructure is there".
yeah and what we are gonna do with it? launch like 10 tiny satellites into space? let some billionaire see space? right now threes simply no need for it space elevators only start making making sense when theres need for mass import and export of stuff into and out of space like in greco
If you have a space elevator, it becomes a lot cheaper to maintain a base on the moon, which can be used to assemble ships for asteroid mining, exploration of other planets and the eventual space colony builder.
Right now those things are hard because most of the weight carried in rockets is the fuel required to escape Earth's gravity. If you can build a ship in space, that alone leaves a lot of space free for equipment, not to mention you don't need to design them to deal with the atmosphere.
Kind of wonder if it offers a very distinct "future" aesthetic that's both sensible in terms of the story but also immediately gives the viewer the sense of a sci-fi setting. The image of Earth surrounded by an orbital ring, connected by the elevators, featured pretty prominently in a lot of Tekkaman Blade's art.
>mmbn jakob.png >Yggdrasil
What is your image from, OP? It's familiar for a variety of reasons, but I can't place it. I reverse image searched it and got nothing.
It's from Megaman NT Warrior anime i don't remember which season. Funny thing is there was an orbital elevator in Megaman X8 called Jakob which supposed to be in completely different timeline
Because of the timeline of the concept of space elevators becoming popular compared to when most of the hallmark mecha depictions of them.
In short, both happened in the early late 70s/80s. Then future mecha simply repeating what the previous mecha did.
You see the same thing with other sci fi concepts as well.
Cool and practical. It's impressive and at the same time saves money on launching stuff from the planet. In case of the latter why even launch stuff from the planet if you can transport the ship up there and launch. Or alternatively build whole ships there by sending the materials with said space elevator up there.
Space elevators are like dyson spheres in that they're awesome on paper but the sheer engineering required for one is beyond mortal comprehesion. Hell even in fricking Star Trek they were amazed someone managed to build a dyson sphere and that's the 2300s.
Have you seen how much energy and money gets wasted in simply sending a rocket up into space? Planning for the long term is all what orbital elevators are even about.
>Planning for long term with something we don't have the technology for
It just looks cool. That's it
>write sci-fi story
>whine about things that don't exist being in the story
We should have started building a orbital elevator in the 70s/80s
Because they're rad as frick
It looks cool. It's like having that ominous castle in the mountains from old tales where the evil wizard/town rapist lives, except on a futuristic setting.
My favorite Orbital Elevator has to be the Atlas from Front Mission: Gun Hazard, because of the presentation: right from the intro you're presented with the idea that the new reactors Wanzers and other vehicles are currently using are so efficient the huge tower built by several countries (in Greenland, for some reason) became obsolete and sits there abandoned.
Was the only purpose they could imagine for easing access to space travel that it'd make for more efficient fuel sourcing or something? That's kind of silly. There's a shit ton of mining that you could do if getting things into and back from space is that easy, for one thing. Which would create support jobs in basically every industry all on it's own.
The longest we can make individual carbon nanotubes so far is about half a meter, and the longest we can make sections of them together is only about 14 centimeters since putting them together creates imperfections one long one won't have. We are a long, long way from one that can stretch all the way into space (whatever height that's deemed to be for the sake of the cable). I'm pretty sure I recall reading something about how even carbon nanotubes may not actually be strong enough to withstand the stresses either, despite people's expectations.
I'm pretty sure if the first people that go to Mars die a horrible, slow death by decay that it'd just make some people want to go their and tame it even harder.
Single-crystal graphene actually has more tensible strength than carbon nanotubes and is significantly easier to make, since you don't need to "grow" it. There are companies which can make around 2 meters per minute and each roll can have up to one kilometer in length. It really depends on having a machine that can make a ridiculously large roll while perfectly maintaining quality.
https://www.nasa.gov/sites/default/files/atoms/files/space_portal_nixene_publishing.pdf
They're a cool piece of speculative sci-fi. If one were to exist, it would result in a complete paradigm shift in the way the world views space travel. Cheap, safe, regularly scheduled space travel would be the most important technology in history so far.
Gigantophilia or some shit.
Giant robots, giant monsters, giant porn, japs fricking love giant everything.
>hurr why do japs do X
Frick off moron.
I wish they produced more giant women media like games/anime
why dont we have orbital elevators yet???
Iirc, its mostly because don't have materials that can resist the stress required, but besides that, its perfectly possible to do it.
It'd fall over
Not just stress. You need force that matches the rotation of the earth while having equilibrium.
Physics is the main enemy of scifi writers.
Making a perfect 36km long cable with exotic materials is hard. Realistically, we're more likely to use skyhooks to fill that role for the next century or two.
skyhooks? what the heck are those?
> its perfectly possible to do it.
good news.... do we know what those required mats are?
someone has to look towards the future...
Basically a space station with a big cable that extends down to the upper atmosphere. I think the Zacktraeger from Turn A was supposed to be one.
i saw Turn A but don't really remember that being explained. so it's like the skyhooks from uh bioshock infinite except instead of a human it's a ship. i'm not that engineering smart but an orbital elevator seems safer.
>it's like the skyhooks from uh bioshock infinite
Well, no. Those are just glorified zip-lines.
>i'm not that engineering smart but an orbital elevator seems safer
A space elevator would be ideal, but currently there's no material that could be used to make the tether. Even if carbon nanotubes or graphene are strong enough to do it, we need to make a perfect cable over 36000 Km long with the stuff. For comparsion, we can't even make more than a few centimeters of CNT, so space elevators are going to stay in the science fiction for at least another century.
can you do it in 40 years instead? i'll add it to my calendar.
If even one thing goes wrong a shitload of people are gonna die on the ground.
PERHAPS THE SAME COULD BE SAID OF ALL LARGE STRUCTURES
If it was built to break apart in little pieces if it became disconnected it wouldnt be so bad
>t. Jk I have no idea
With the tether in that image, failure wouldn't pose a significant risk to the ground.
A space elevator probably would though, because suddenly you've got 36km of cable in freefall.
Because it's mostly a meme for futurists to orgasm over, much like colonizing Mars, perminant space habitats and vacuum trains.
Good thing we spent all money and resources teaching Javascript to African refugees instead
>muh zero sum gaymz
None of those things were going to happen regardless of how much time and money was burned trying to pursue them, or how much (You) cry over them.
(...)because space is fake and the earth is hollow
>everyone who isn't part of my cult must be part of another cult
one reason why futurists aren't taken seriously
Do you see no irony in typing this out as a response to a joke post?
Musk might’ve convinced you with his Sachiko memes that going to Mars is easier than QoL improvements, but moving into space without first raising all of us up on Earth is how movements like Zeon were able to thrive at all.
the first people who go to Mars are going to ensure nobody tries to go to Mars again, and not in the cool Gundam way where they create a distinct nation, in the "wow, they died fricking horribly from something we cannot prevent" way
Humans are lazy and competitive by default, what you are proposing is fantasy.
>Humans are lazy and competitive by default
Those are contradictory statements, lazy people don't care about putting in effort to compete
Improving the QoL of the scum of the Earth endangers the status quo in ways that a pie-in-the-actual-sky vanity project never will. Nobody who matters cares enough to object to sending humans to Mars. Contrast that with more people earning a living fighting GMO crops than there are people trying to make GMO crops. The poor MUST suffer. Human Martians won't keep a single child under 5 from dying and that's the only reason it might happen.
The tower of Babel happened, you don't want that a second time.
I'm sure everything will be fine
You start the mass import and export after the space elevator makes it cheap, duh.
>You start the mass import and export after the space elevator makes it cheap, duh.
yeah?? thats literally what i wrote?
Not that anon, but I imagine the difference is you suggested it as a "there's no point even thinking about doing so until after one has been built", with the implication it can't be done until a specific use case that requires that kind of mass import and export is known and desired and the other anon meant "why not just build it and start mass import and export using it because some kind of mass import and export is going to exist if the infrastructure is there".
>I’m sure everything will be fine
>Yomi sends his assassins, robots, and robot assassins after you
yeah and what we are gonna do with it? launch like 10 tiny satellites into space? let some billionaire see space? right now threes simply no need for it space elevators only start making making sense when theres need for mass import and export of stuff into and out of space like in greco
If you have a space elevator, it becomes a lot cheaper to maintain a base on the moon, which can be used to assemble ships for asteroid mining, exploration of other planets and the eventual space colony builder.
Right now those things are hard because most of the weight carried in rockets is the fuel required to escape Earth's gravity. If you can build a ship in space, that alone leaves a lot of space free for equipment, not to mention you don't need to design them to deal with the atmosphere.
they aren't practical. earth's gravity is too thicc. we might be able to make one on the moon though
then any coutry can just shoot missile at it
nah Osea tried it and didn't work those things are built to last
if that don't work use more gun
no.
more gun used to defend space elevator instead
Kind of wonder if it offers a very distinct "future" aesthetic that's both sensible in terms of the story but also immediately gives the viewer the sense of a sci-fi setting. The image of Earth surrounded by an orbital ring, connected by the elevators, featured pretty prominently in a lot of Tekkaman Blade's art.
>mmbn jakob.png
>Yggdrasil
What is your image from, OP? It's familiar for a variety of reasons, but I can't place it. I reverse image searched it and got nothing.
It's from Megaman NT Warrior anime i don't remember which season. Funny thing is there was an orbital elevator in Megaman X8 called Jakob which supposed to be in completely different timeline
It's a pun. Jacob's Ladder -> Jacob's Elevator
Because of the timeline of the concept of space elevators becoming popular compared to when most of the hallmark mecha depictions of them.
In short, both happened in the early late 70s/80s. Then future mecha simply repeating what the previous mecha did.
You see the same thing with other sci fi concepts as well.
Cool and practical. It's impressive and at the same time saves money on launching stuff from the planet. In case of the latter why even launch stuff from the planet if you can transport the ship up there and launch. Or alternatively build whole ships there by sending the materials with said space elevator up there.
Space elevators are like dyson spheres in that they're awesome on paper but the sheer engineering required for one is beyond mortal comprehesion. Hell even in fricking Star Trek they were amazed someone managed to build a dyson sphere and that's the 2300s.