3 ms·
Given a space elevator, there are some neat tricks that help in de-orbiting and orbiting material at the same time. Essentially, you connect two equal masses wi
by rocqua 9y ago
Given a space elevator, there are some neat tricks that help in de-orbiting and orbiting material at the same time.
Essentially, you connect two equal masses with a tether, one you want in a higher orbit and the other you want in a lower orbit. With the tether in place, both masses rotate around their common center of mass. When the masses have 'switched' places, you untether them.
I don't recall whether the thethers need to be affixed to the space-elevators to keep them in place.
- Terr_ 9y agoI don't think a full-blown space-elevator is needed for that: Skyhooks [0] don't need their centers to be attached to it, and the lateral velocities involved are probably best kept away from the elevator body. If you have a space elevator scaffolding already, just use descending payloads as counterweights to ascending ones. [0] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Skyhook_(structure) https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Skyhook_(structure)