Next Stop, the Moon: Seattle Team Wins Space Elevator Competition
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LOS ANGELES — A Seattle team has collected a $900,000 prize in a NASA-backed competition to develop the concept of an elevator to space — an idea spurred by science fiction novels.
The team's robotic machine raced up more than 2,950 feet of cable dangling from a helicopter.
Powered by a ground-based laser pointed up at the robot's photo voltaic cells that converted the light into electricity, the LaserMotive machine completed one of its climbs in about three minutes and 48 seconds, good for second-place money.
The contest is intended to encourage development of a theory that originated in the 1960s and was popularized by Arthur C. Clarke's 1979 novel "The Fountains of Paradise."
Space elevators are envisioned as a way to reach space without the risk and expense of rockets.
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I'd love to see a way for Joe Tourist to visit a space station. I also think that'll be the least expensive way to develop a true space program, where we can build ships for space that don't have to deal with the atmosphere and the higher gravity.
Wonder how long it'll be before somebody wants to step out partway up the elevator and hang glide / skydive down for 20 or 30 miles?