Kalpana One design (was Rotating space colonies)

I presented this before, but as a secondry arguement. I appreciate the feedback on the rock size, and I agree (at least to the extent that I was too lazy to do the math myself).

Bottom line is how could one guarantee that an asteroid would not break apart with aerobraking? I suspect more often than not you apply a little pressure and a lot of heat (from air friction) to something that has been in equilibrium in space for millions of years. Anyone that has used a pressure washer on brick knows that if you don't pay attention it is quite easy to break off brick and/or mortar if you get too close. While the stresses (water vs. very very thin air) aremany orders of magnitude less, to me the same idea applies. Plus if a little air works itself into cracks then expands you will loose material. How much, who knows?

Another consideration is LEO debris. Even if you don't loose that much material, some of it will burn up; however, some of it will continue back to orbit. The KE may be reduced to a point where it is in LEO.

Hate to be a naysayer, but I don't think aerobraking is viable (Maybe it is just monday morning). Now controlled mass-shedding may be more effective than even rockets energy-wise to alter the orbit around the sun to earth orbit (likely a combination of both).

--- On Sun, 10/3/10, Joe Strout wrote:

From: Joe Strout
Subject: Re: [spacesettlers] Kalpana One design (was Re: Rotating space colonies)
To: spacesettlers@yahoogroups.com
Date: Sunday, October 3, 2010, 11:18 PM

On 10/3/10 10:08 PM, brooksn wrote:

> I don't really understand why it would take decades and multiple passes
> to nudge a tiny (5 meter) asteroid from an already passing very near to
> Earth course, to an aerobraking course with the upper atmosphere. But I
> could be missing something.

My assumption here is that (as in other aerobraking maneuvers) it takes
more than one pass to effect that much change in the orbit. But in this
case, each pass will be very long.

But I could be missing something too -- this is tricky stuff, and we
really need someone experienced in orbital mechanics to crank out some
numbers.

Best,
- Joe