Vulnerability of Space Settlements to Attacks

Lucio de Souza Coelho wrote:

> Okay, but you would have to either de-spin the first torus to build the
> other one attached to it or to build the second torus separately and then
> do a somewhat clumsy maneuver of spinning it and then connecting it to the
> first torus when spin is equalized. Both cases seem unpractical to me.
> I do
> prefer your second suggestion:

Build the new one in line with the spin axis of the older one, a short
distance away, spin it up, using small thrust along the axis move it
close to the other one, say 10 m for example then put in connecting
access tunnels. Don't see that it would be that clumsy, is just a
docking procedure writ large. Should be easy to match spin, and as long
as you keep the joining velocity tiny, then there shouldn't be any
trouble with moving them closer. If it is hard to put in the access
tunnels after spin up, then put them inplace before spinning up then you
only have to seal the join when they meet.

To turn it into a cylinder build the shell with one end open just a
little larger in diameter, again in line with the spin axis, and move it
in so it surrounds the torus's, then spin it up and make the joins.
Build the other end plate on the other side of the habitat spin it up
and join it up.

> That's looks like my idea of a "colony matrix". You have a humongously big
> 2D, endlessly expansible hexagonal matrix facing sunwards.

Why 2D ? why not 3D, space them correctly and you won't block the sunlight.

> Each cell of the
> matrix is occupied by an habitat of size and shape independent from the
> others; you could have habitats that would just be "space houses" (like
> those suggested by Ian Woollard) and the bigger ones could be "space
> buildings".

Two problems with small habitats ( I am guessing you are meaning for one
family unit an upwards ?)

1. You use the more material to provide the same volume of living
space, And you would probably have to shield each one to the same sort
of depth as an Island 1, which would make it cheaper to build an Island
one than a cluster of space houses for the same population.

2. Smaller spin radius, could lead to problems.

B