ISLAND ONE, a prime time family sitcom set on the High Frontier

On 12/16/05, Xenophile wrote:
(...)
> > but as an alien
>
> AAAUUUGGGHHH!!!!!! ALIEN!! Don't abduct me! Keep that probe away!!!
>
> OK, couldn't resist. I know what you mean, though: alien, foreigner;
> not alien, extraterrestrial.

It could be worse: since the United States is often called "The
Empire" and I am not part of it, I thought about calling myself a
"barbarian". ;-)

(...)
> I haven't calculated (or asked somebody else to calculate for me)
> exactly how much it would save, but I'd imagine that a non-trivial
> amount of fuel goes into getting a megaton launch vehicle up to that
> first Mach 3. Using the acceleration tunnel, that fuel can be left
> off. And of course, if you leave off some of the fuel, the vehicle is
> lighter, which means you can save a bit more. Mostly, I want the
> acceleration tunnel to replace the solid rocket boosters.
(...)

Oh, ok, I don't remember seeing the mention to Mach 3. That would
indeed represent a *huge* saving in fuel.