Heat management, recycling, $, and space ores

All,

One of the new members with a comment.
A tether would produce energy at the expense of orbital energy, this is true.

A key factor is how much energy will be needed for recycling, ore refinement, smelting, rocket fuel production, long range radio communications, radar for earth crossing asteroids, etc.

Regarding solar, much of the area will be consumed by mirrors reflecting light into the colony to grow food and fiber. Mirrors to concentrate energy for high temperature boilers or processing will be needed too. Solar panels can and should be mounted externally so the colony may look a little like a flower with the residence at the center. :-)

Raising or lowering a colony using a tether may be a very slow process since the colony is likely to weight many tons, and if solar is used, hundreds of years may be needed for a significant change.

Regards,

Tom
From: Combs, Mike
To: 'spacesettlers@egroups.com'
Sent: Monday, November 27, 2000 5:39 AM
Subject: RE: [spacesettlers] Heat management, recycling, $, and space ores

From: Dr. Omni [mailto:dromni@...]

Yes, indeed I discussed that with Darren in an earlier message. After some
back-of-the-envelope calculation, the conclusion was that, provided that the
habitat is coupled with a much more massive natural body (e.g., an
asteroid), the rate of lowering would be negligible and the habitat could
have an steady energy supply for centuries without dropping itself
somewhere. I think that maybe that is an alternative for habitats associated
with asteroid-like moons around the gas giants.

Could be. The tendency in my thinking is that given the constant nature of sunlight in any orbit largely outside the shadow of a planet, and given the kind of enormous yet flimsy solar collectors it will be possible to engineer in 0 G, I tend to think of space settlers having energy coming out their ears. In other words, obtaining an energy supply will be among the least of their problems.

On the other hand, electrodynamic tethers might be just the thing for a habitat which you want to permanently orbit Jupiter, but on the other hand for which you would like to occasionally raise or lower the orbit in order to arrange favorable trajectories for explorations of the Jovian moons.

"NCR" is another unfamiliar acronym for me... And I'm also not aware of the
study that you're referring to. Would you explain them, please?

NRC: National Research Council.

Rgds,
Mike Combs

One of the new members with a comment.
A tether would produce energy at the expense of orbital energy, this is true.

A key factor is how much energy will be needed for recycling, ore refinement, smelting, rocket fuel production, long range radio communications, radar for earth crossing asteroids, etc.

Regarding solar, much of the area will be consumed by mirrors reflecting light into the colony to grow food and fiber. Mirrors to concentrate energy for high temperature boilers or processing will be needed too. Solar panels can and should be mounted externally so the colony may look a little like a flower with the residence at the center. :-)

Raising or lowering a colony using a tether may be a very slow process since the colony is likely to weight many tons, and if solar is used, hundreds of years may be needed for a significant change.

Regards,

Tom
From:
Combs, Mike
To:
'spacesettlers@egroups.com'
Sent:
Monday, November 27, 2000 5:39 AM
Subject:
RE: [spacesettlers] Heat management, recycling, $, and space ores
From:
Dr. Omni [mailto:dromni@...]
Yes, indeed I discussed that with Darren in an earlier message. After some
back-of-the-envelope calculation, the conclusion was that, provided that the
habitat is coupled with a much more massive natural body (e.g., an
asteroid), the rate of lowering would be negligible and the habitat could
have an steady energy supply for centuries without dropping itself
somewhere. I think that maybe that is an alternative for habitats associated
with asteroid-like moons around the gas giants.

Could be. The tendency in my thinking is that given the constant nature of sunlight in any orbit largely outside the shadow of a planet, and given the kind of enormous yet flimsy solar collectors it will be possible to engineer in 0 G, I tend to think of space settlers having energy coming out their ears. In other words, obtaining an energy supply will be among the least of their problems.

On the other hand, electrodynamic tethers might be just the thing for a habitat which you want to permanently orbit Jupiter, but on the other hand for which you would like to occasionally raise or lower the orbit in order to arrange favorable trajectories for explorations of the Jovian moons.
"NCR" is another unfamiliar acronym for me... And I'm also not aware of the
study that you're referring to. Would you explain them, please?

NRC: National Research Council.

Rgds,
Mike Combs