It might the stuff of science fiction dreams, but a Japanese construction company has announced that it will have built a working space elevator by 2050. Where can I join the queue?
Think of Archimedes’ screw, only sticking up tens of thousands of miles from the surface into the earth, carrying tons of space crap without the need for rocket or laser propulsion.
Japanese scientists are so hyped up on the possibilities of building a real life space elevator that in just two months’ time the country is playing host to a conference designed to set a production timetable. Carbon nanotube technology has advanced so rapidly that a material capable of withstanding the amazing forces in the space elevator cable is almost within reach: according to the chairman of the Japan Space Elevator Association it’d only need to be four times stronger than the current strongest nanotube rope.
