session 3

Title

Space Elevator as Transportation Infrastructure to Access Space

Description

This session will have two areas of focus: 1) Transportation Infrastructure for movement off-planet, especially GEO and beyond. There needs to be a Change of Vision for Interplanetary Movement when delivery of mass is inexpensive, timely, routine, environmentally friendly, daily, and supportive. It turns out that projections of transportation capabilities for Space Elevators provide immense opportunities and ensures that humanity can "bring with them" the essential elements for survival and aggressive growth. Space Elevators can help deliver 1,000,000 tonnes to Mars and 5,000,000 to Space Solar Power orbits. 2) Tether Climber design and testing characteristics: As the principal means of moving massive cargo, early design and testing concepts must be developed. The complexity of climbers needs to be addressed with both customer demands and engineering needs. One such question is how is "good contact" accomplished with new low friction material, such as single crystal graphene. Another is evaluating the impact of tremendous improvements in solar cell efficiencies and lightness. A good set of presentations on tether climbers should show that the Space Elevator is closer than most people think.

Date

2021-10-26

Time

14:45

Room

Sharja D

IPC members

• Co-Chair: Dr. Peter Swan, Teaching Science and Technology, Inc (TSTI), United States;

• Co-Chair: Dr. Yoji Ishikawa, Obayashi Corporation, Japan;

• Rapporteur: Dr. Jerry Eddy, International Space Elevator Consortium (ISEC), United States;