Reaching the moon is one of the objectives that science has constantly sought to replicate and for decades scientists have been looking for simple ways to achieve it.
In fact, the continuous race to ‘conquer the moon’ has triggered a series of studies on the possibility of creating a more direct access and lhe researchers from the University of Cambridge and Columbia are no exception, as they have decided to join forces to study the possibility of creating a space elevator.
(See: Where and how to see the crash of a NASA ship against an asteroid).
Recently, the studyThe Spaceline: A Practical Space Elevator Alternative Achievable With Today’s Technology‘, published by the Cornell University Astronomical Act Magazine, revealed some of the keys to the initiative to achieve this goal successfully.
These are some of the conclusions that scientists have reached:
1. The researchers point out that a ‘Spaceline’ cable should be located that connects with the Earth’s gravity zone, which would have to be anchored to the satellite’s surface.
In this regard, the researchers state that:With current materials, it is feasible to build a cable that extends to close to the height of geostationary orbit, which would facilitate travel and construction between the Earth and the Moon.“.
The cable would have an infrastructure similar to that of the railways and the materials would be carbon nanotubes, because it needs to be strong.
2. About the design, the elevator would have to be very narrow at the ends to resist the pressure of gravity and width in the central area.
China’s attempt on Mars
The conquest of space is not limited only to the Moon, in the eastern hemisphere, China for some years has been in the task of thinking how to reduce the costs of space missions to Mars
The main rocket manufacturer in China in 2021 unveiled the plan for the exploration of this planet with a concept similar to that being developed by Cambridge and Columbia.
(See: This will be the inside of the first space hotel to be opened in 2027).
For it, the China Academy of Launch Vehicle Technology (CALT), state-owned, assured that it will carry out a first phase to identify the terrain of the planet, collect information and prepare with the required technology. Then, a mission will be carried out to build a base on the planet and finally generate that means of transport that allows them to connect with Mars.
What is a space elevator?
The idea is originally from the Russian physicist Konstantin Tsiolkovsky, who imagined that it would be easier to build a structure that would allow a vehicle to leave the ground without the use of rockets. At the time, the possibility was ruled out because there was no material that could resist the weight.
The idea was taken up by another Russian, Yuri N. Artsulanov, who added that to achieve this, a satellite could be used as a counterweight.
From this proposal more scientists have been put into the work of studying the possibilities.
(See: It is not science fiction: Nasa confirmed that it diverted the path of an asteroid).
Different experts have designed cables with various materials to test the resistance, especially at the point of greatest tension, 35,786 km above the Earth’s equator.
Compared to the material of the cable, the idea that has generated the greatest echo was proposed by the American researcher, Bradley C Edwards in 2000. He designed a spiral-shaped cable made of carbon nanotubes that turned out to be stronger.
NASA is currently working on Edwards’s proposal.
(See: How long until the end of the world? The ESA made the calculation).
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