3 ms·
Space Stasis (2011)
- scrumper 10y agoThat was a very illuminating article, thanks for posting. It was also nicely written: "Before dismissing the above story as an aberration, consider that the modern petroleum industry is a direct outgrowth of the practice of going out in wooden, wind-driven ships to hunt sperm whales with hand-hurled spears and then boiling their heads to make lamp fuel."
- tbabb 10y agoWhat are these magical alternative routes to space the author speaks of? Outside of the atmosphere, the only way to propel yourself is Newton's laws, and that implies a rocket. In the context of Spacex's more recent successes in innovation, this reads a bit like those "computers will never be smaller than a gymnasium" thinkpieces.
- scrumper 10y agoReaching orbit is the really hard problem he's talking about; once you're up there you have your choice of high SI things like ion thrusters or solar sails - stuff that's useless for reaching orbital velocity but works great in free fall in a vacuum.
- parenthephobia 10y agoThe most magical is the space elevator. Mundanely speaking, launching from high-altitude planes or balloons, and using space planes, could save a lot of fuel, as well as allowing for a wider selection of launch sites and, as a consequence, wider launch windows and the ability to change where one launches from at short notice, all of which could help reduce launch costs.
- krg 10y agoPrevious discussion: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=2172398 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=2172398