Non-rocket spacelaunch

Non-rocket spacelaunch refers to theoretical concepts for launch into space where much of the speed and altitude needed to achieve orbit is provided by a propulsion technique that is not subject to the limits of the rocket equation. Although all space launches to date have been rockets, a number of alternatives to rockets have been proposed. In some systems, such as a combination launch system, skyhook, rocket sled launch, rockoon, or air launch, a portion of the total delta-v may be provided, either directly or indirectly, by using rocket propulsion. Present-day launch costs are very high –

2,500 to

25,000 per kilogram from Earth to low Earth orbit (LEO). As a result, launch costs are a large percentage of the cost of all space endeavors. If launch can be made cheaper, the total cost of space missions will be reduced. Due to the exponential nature of the rocket equation, providing even a small amount of the velocity to LEO by other means has the potential of greatly reducing the cost of getting to orbit. Launch costs in the hundreds of dollars per kilogram would make possible many proposed large-scale space projects such as space colonization, space-based solar power and terraforming Mars. In this usage, the term "static" is intended to convey the understanding that the structural portion of the system has no internal moving parts. A space tower is a tower that would reach outer space. To avoid an immediate need for a vehicle launched at orbital velocity to raise its perigee, a tower would have to extend above the edge of space (above the 100 km Kármán line), but a far lower tower height could reduce atmospheric drag losses during ascent. If the tower went all the way to geosynchronous orbit at approximately , objects released at such height could then drift away with minimal power and would be in a circular orbit. The concept of a structure reaching to geosynchronous orbit was first conceived by Konstantin Tsiolkovsky. The original concept envisioned by Tsiolkovsky was a compression structure.

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A momentum exchange tether is a kind of space tether that could theoretically be used as a launch system, or to change spacecraft orbits. Momentum exchange tethers create a controlled force on the end-masses of the system due to the pseudo-force known as centrifugal force. While the tether system rotates, the objects on either end of the tether will experience continuous acceleration; the magnitude of the acceleration depends on the length of the tether and the rotation rate.

A launch loop, or Lofstrom loop, is a proposed system for launching objects into orbit using a moving cable-like system situated inside a sheath attached to the Earth at two ends and suspended above the atmosphere in the middle. The design concept was published by Keith Lofstrom and describes an active structure maglev cable transport system that would be around 2,000 km (1,240 mi) long and maintained at an altitude of up to 80 km (50 mi). A launch loop would be held up at this altitude by the momentum of a belt that circulates around the structure.

An orbital ring is a concept of an artificial ring placed around a body and set rotating at such a rate that the apparent centrifugal force is large enough to counteract the force of gravity. For the Earth, the required speed is on the order of 10 km/sec, compared to a typical low Earth orbit velocity of 8 km/sec. The structure is intended to be used as a space station or as a planetary vehicle for very high-speed transportation or space launch.

Learn the concepts used in the design of space missions, manned or unmanned, and operations, based on the professional experience of the lecturer.

The main objective of the course is to provide an overview of space propulsion systems. The course will also describe the basic design principles of propulsion systems.

Students will learn the principles of mechanics to enable a better understanding of physical phenomena, such as the kinematics and dyamics of point masses and solid bodies. Students will acquire the c

Applications of Non-Electrodynamic Tether MOOC: Space Mission Design and Operations

Explores the practical uses of non-electrodynamic tethers in space missions.

Space Mission Design and Operations

Explores space mission design, conservation laws, radiation balance, and interplanetary trajectories, including practical applications of reaction wheels and space tethers.

Space Mission Design and Operations

Covers space mission design, SpaceX Starship, attitude control systems, human spaceflight, and space tethers.

Automation in steep terrain agriculture: an optimal controller to prevent tipping and slipping of tethered robots on slopes

Josephine Anna Eleanor Hughes, Max Mirko Polzin

Autonomous robots have the potential to fundamentally transform conventional farming methods, e.g. by enabling economically viable farming of sloped arable land. However, navigation on slopes in harsh conditions is challenging for robots as they must be pr ...

TAYLOR & FRANCIS LTD2023

Pd(II)-Catalyzed Aminoacetoxylation of Alkenes Via Tether Formation

Jérôme Waser, Stefano Nicolai, Ashis Kumar Das, Thomas Rossolini

A Pd-catalyzed method based on the use of a molecular tether is described for olefin difunctionalization. Enabled by an easily introduced trifluoroacetaldehyde-derived tether, a simultaneous introduction of oxygen and nitrogen heteroatoms across unsaturate ...

2022

Mechanical Activation of Chemical Bonds at Polymer Interfaces

Julian Nicolas Bleich

Polymer brushes are a specific class of polymer thin films in which each chain is tethered to the underlying substrate via one chain end. In sufficiently densely grafted assemblies, the individual polymer chains are forced into an extended chain conformati ...

EPFL2021