3 ms·

I didn't see it mentioned in this article, but the cable is actually very small. I read this older NASA study that said that for a carbon nanotube tether, an op

by lutorm 13y ago

I didn't see it mentioned in this article, but the cable is actually very small. I read this older NASA study that said that for a carbon nanotube tether, an optimal cable would be a thin tape something like an inch across. That has pretty small cross section for being hit by a meteoroid.

andrewflnr 13y ago
On the other hand, a satellite a couple meters across has plenty of cross section with which to find the cable. Even if we take all those down (not in our lifetime), there is a lot of little stuff in orbit, and it would only take one.