The idea of building a space elevator had exist for decades by scientists, science fiction writers, intellectuals and others. This is an old dream of humanity for over a century, and attention when, it will be certainly a credit to the human race, and it will be the largest and most advanced building ever knewn.
So what is actually a space elevator?
Imagine a very strong cord that lasted from somewhere on the planet into space and stopped there, in space, thousands of kilometers ahead. Now imagine elevator moves across this cable.
This is a space elevator. Short description, huge challenges.
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| Illustration of a space elevator (Source: NASA) |
The cable holding the elevator need to be at huge strength in order to withstand the various forces exerted on it. Given the length of thick cable acts like this, the only material for it today is carbon nanotubes, that is not economically practical produced such great quantities that required enormous structure as a space elevator.
Fortunately, the field of carbon nanotubes know extraordinary developments in the recent years, and most likely in the coming decades will be found appropriate economic and physical matter.
What is the purpose of the elevator? Well, beyond human curiosity and desire to go beyond the limits, thare are many other targets.
Space Elevator can move passengers and cargo into space easily. It would help to the space exploration and to the construction of space colonies.
also, space travel prices will be reduced dramatically, and everybody will be able to go to trip in space.
The space elevator will move over the cable by electromagnetic field.
The end of the cable will be connected to a weight, so that by the centripetal force of the rotation of the earth the cable will stretch, And will be a balance between the centripetal force and gravity.
as the big challenges in building a space elevator, the dangers are big too.
One of the dangers could be cutting off the elevator cable, which can endanger the people staying in the elevator.
Another thing, but more rare is an asteroid impact or asteroid particles cable or worse, the elevator when travel.
And the most dangerous of them all is the collapse of the cable on earth.
It sounds scary, that cable in enormous weight falls on Earth, but do not worry.
Experts say that the stuff of the cable, when will be found, would be so light, to which, if the cable will collapse and fall to the earth, it will be soft as a paper falling on the earth.
So what made so far on the subject? Is somebody planning or building something? The answer is yes.
Google and other companies around the world have been planning schedule for the construction of a space elevator, and building miniature models.
