With the end of the shuttle program and an International Space Station still in need of supplies, the aerospace industry is working the kinks of out of a century-old idea to build a service elevator from Earth to outer space.
In this episode, Josh and Chuck dive into the fascinating world of space elevators - a theoretical transportation system that could revolutionize how we get to space. They explore how a ultra-thin carbon nanotube ribbon stretching 62,000 miles from an ocean platform to a counterweight in space could replace expensive rocket launches, potentially dropping costs from $10,000 per pound to just $200. The hosts discuss the engineering challenges, particularly the need for impossibly long carbon nanotubes, and examine why this sci-fi concept might actually be closer to reality than you'd think.
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