Let us explore a particular type of potential space access technology, in as much detail as possible (given the author's current very limited resources due to an understandable lack of support from the business community), and to explore the reasons for the project and its interactions with other things. The technology appears particularly apt for use in lifting very large quantities of payload between the ground and GEO.

First, why focus on GEO? GEO has many qualities lending itself to being the center of focus for near future space programs. It has some drawbacks, too. How do its attributes fit in with the purposes of civilization?

GEO, Geostationary Earth Orbit or otherwise known as The Clarke Belt in recognition of its discoverer Arthur C. Clarke, has as its main attribute that all points along its earth-encircling space are stationary relative to the earth’s 24-hour rotational surface; another way of saying it is that the angular velocity of objects in GEO is identical to the angular velocity of the earth's 24 hour daily rotation. This makes it a great place nowadays for communication satellites, appearantly motionless sites for aiming radio antenna dishes. It would also make it a great place for Solar Satellite Power Stations, beaming their solar-electric energy down to fixed rectenna sites on the earth surface to supply the world with clean abundant electrical energy to power civilization worldwide. And for the purposes of lifting structures for transportation to and from space, it is the one place where a ground-attached structure can lift payload and leave it there, and it will stay there without needing some added acceleration to put it into a stable orbit. GEO has a one-to-one motionless correlation with the ground, on this rotating planet of ours. However, it has a drawback in that it is within a hazardous radiation belt area, requiring passive and electromagnetic shielding for people living there a long time, although there is potential for sponging up that radiation by electromagnetically funneling those charged particles to be captured within passive mass shielding, clearing the radiation belt out to a significant extent.

So GEO is a logical choice for the major terminal site for transportation systems which continuously lift payload to space, much as a person might lift an object from the floor and set it on a table... in contrast with tossing it up free flying awhile to the tabletop; the continuous lifting of the payload being always supported by the ground by the lifting mechanism, no matter how high it goes, which perhaps can have much higher transportation efficiencies than for launch systems which expend most of their energy merely in lifting the immense weight of the fuel itself, extremely little of the fuel’s energy goes to actually lifting the payload itself in conventional launch transportation systems. A ground transportation structure which continuously lifts payload to GEO and deposits it there in orbit, could make GEO a way station for conventional spacecraft for forays into the solar system from there already 91% up out of the planetary gravitational well, and enable the use of GEO for many new uses, such as for SSPS for supplying the world with abundant clean electrical energy to power civilization (instead of burning up the earth’s remaining stored petrochemicals merely for its energy content), could be a site for immense total materials recycling plants, powered by solar energy, operating in the abundant zero gee hard vacuum there in GEO; large scale space habitats there in GEO would have an easy commute to the ground and back via this lifting structure. Thus it has the potential for solving upcoming major crises of worldwide energy shortages through making abundant power from SSPS possible, pollution of the ecosystem by unrecycled byproducts of civilization through total recycling in solar powered mass-charge ratio chemical separation plants and the transportation of toxic recycle materials to and from the plants, increasing population density requiring vast room to freely grow, and dwindling economically recoverable material resources needing a very high place from which to go get raw materials from the moons of this solar system and asteroids. These potentials seem very beneficial for the future comfortable abundant survival of civilization in the not-so-distant future.

So, how could such a lifting structure from ground to GEO be created? There are a couple of basic ways, although very different from each other: tether technology and electric motor technology.

Tether technology -- one way, though not the one extensively explored here, is that of a tether, attached to the ground at the equator, extending through GEO, the centrifugal force on the mass of the 24-hour rotating structure’s part beyond GEO is balancing the weight of the part of the tether below GEO. Payloads are carried to space by vehicles which climb up and down the tether

Equatorially tethered space elevators, supported by the centrifugal force on it by virtue of the earth’s 24 hour spin, having slightly more weight on its part which is above GEO in comparison to that below GEO, have been proposed for almost 50 years, frequently excitingly re-invented by individuals including this author, in 1970), yet the strength to weight requirements of such immense structures seems barely in distant sight with hypothetical diamond fiber material in immense quantities, emplaced to essentially center its weight to each side of GEO. (New info: an interesting carbon nanotube matrix-based tether-type space elevator was proposed by Bradley in detail at ASCE's Space 2002 conference.) Delivering lift energy up such an earth tower is a problem, too, losses in conductors or inefficient laser power conversion and continuous uninterrupted distribution of beam power to multiple vehicles on the structure. Its potential transportation efficiencies are derived from the fact the payloads are climbing up a structure extending up from the ground; for example, a vehicle could just stop and hang on such a tower, without further expending energy, yet a conventional rocket launch vehicle hanging motionless up at same altitude would have to expend fuel energy at a ferocious rate in continuous support of its weight, yet adding no potential energy to its payload thereby. It has an advangtage in that as it extends beyond GEO, it can deliver payloads to a much higher energy level than that of GEO. It has another disadvantage in that management of lateral transient live loads whiplash effects could be difficult, requiring anti-resonant nodes and conversion of lateral cyclical motion into heat.

However, let’s now look elsewhere, to technologies and materials that are much more easily within reach today, for possibly more fitting transportation technique structures, ones that use an armature mass stream to lift vehicles from ground to GEO, and to support the associated electric motor stator structure.

Electric motor technology -- lifting payload to GEO while supporting its own weight by kinetic energy stored within itself

Electric motor technology appears promising for such a purpose. An electric motor, of appropriate dimensions, its ground-attached stator encircling the earth, eccentrically infilling the shape of an orbital transfer trajectory between ground and GEO, the stator enclosing a hard vacuum where it is within the atmosphere so as to provide an unimpeded path for the armature segments which travel far faster than OTT velocity within the OTT-shaped structure. The component of velocity of these armature segments which is faster that orbital transfer velocity appears as centrifugal outward force against the stator, and at some value of aggregate armature mass and velocity, essentially could balance the force of gravity on the stator’s mass along with that of its live loads. As in more conventional electric motors, the armature delivers power to do work to something, in this case the armature segments deliver upward electrodynamic drag coupled to lift payload-carrying vehicles from the ground to GEO and gently back... which is the main purpose of it, of course. This is the basic approach which is explored here, called “KESTS to GEO”, short for “Kinetic Energy Supported Transportation Structures to Geostationary Earth Orbit.”

Points:

What are some of the severe problems, which civilization is rapidly encountering, which potentially could be solved by adequate space resource access?

Why would we need a hugely expanded lifting capability from the ground up to space, instead of merely some ability to bring solar system materials down to the earth (or to GEO) from the moon and asteroids?

Why build lifting structures for transportation from the ground to space, instead of being limited to conventional chemically fueled launch vehicles for free flying spacecraft?

Why a ground transportation structure to GEO instead of only to LEO?

What about building an earth tower tether structure weight-balanced across GEO?

Could a lifting bridge structure from ground to space instead be in the form of an electric motor?

What would be its basic operating principles?

How could those basic principles be actualized in real mechanisms?

What can such transportation structures make possible that would be of great benefit to civilization in the near and distant future?

What are our alternitive options for coping with the severe problems which our civilization now faces?

How can we ensure that development pathways remain integrated with intended applications, while being very open to evolving spinoff technologies and applications?

INTRODUCTION

Quick Overviews

Overview of the transportation technology and integrated applications:

In here we explore an integrated technological design for building a very unconventional electrically powered ground to space transportation system which appears to have the potential of providing truely massive inexpensive access to space in the relatively near future time frame. Instead of the conventional reaction engine technology utilized by all present-day space access projects, this alternative space access technology would utilize electric motor high technology concepts. Stored kinetic energy of very high velocity armature segments circulating along maglev tracks on the underside of an immense Earth-encircling electric motor structure, both centrigugally supports the immense weight of the stator structure, and distributes lift energy all along itself to a continuous stream of payload carrying vehicles travelling along it between the ground and high Earth orbit. Inexpensively and rapidly delivering huge payloads continuously into GEO, this kind of transportation system could enable full emplacement of enough SSPS to provide near-future clean electric power abundant worldwide, high volume toxic waste material total recycling in GEO, large scale materials processing in a hard vacuum environment, plentiful room to build large scale shielded space colonies with easy access back to the Earth, and provide an efficient high starting point for spacecraft launches to the Moon and asteroids. Done wisely, these things will also lift much of the load of civilization from the Earth surface ecosystem, thus enabling its restoration back to long term balance.

Overview of the basic transportation technology:

The technologies involved in this transportation system are generally electromechanical in nature. An oval-shaped complex form of linear motor infills the shape of an orbital transfer trajectory connecting the Earth surface with Geostationary Earth Orbit. The weight of the structure is supported primarily by stored kinetic energy circulating within the structure, its velocity component above orbital velocity appearing as centrifugal force, in a direction opposite to the gravitational field of the planet it encircles. The same stored kinetic energy is inductively tapped to lift vehicles continuously between the ground and GEO.

Overview graphically:

More linked graphics can be found elsewhere throughout this website, and through the more general subject matter web pages at jedcline's earthlink.net website.

Overview of magnitude comparisons:

Large quantities are involved in this transportation structure, yet the size of its perimeter is small compared to the size of all the aluminum cans produced in a year placed end to end. Its cost is small compared to the amount this country sends to the Mid-East for oil to burn up in a year. Its electrical power input would be small compared to that consumed by a large city, and one of its first tasks would be to lift the materials for building Solar Satellite Power Stations in GEO, which thereafter would supply abundant clean renewable electric power to the cities and to the whole world, the energy that powers the muscle of civilization.

Overview of the related current economic, business and political environment:

This concept for a very large scale space project unfortunately comes along at a time when private industry is making a major effort to take over big government administration of space-related activities. Private industry, frustrated at a NASA that incredibly got us to the Moon in less than a decade, but in its singleminded enormous effort to land on the Moon before the Russians could put missle launchers there, then seemed to forget much of the American public's belief in why we really went there, to begin the large scale access to the vast resources of space and its large scale colonization thereafter. Frustrated at a NASA that seemed to forget that the Space Shuttle was created as an expensive high quality basic research vehicle, a first cut at a new way of accessing space, not an economical day-to-day workhorse. So this KESTS to GEO very large scale space project is way out of line with private industry's appearant immediate needs for small scale business space efforts, not desiring a new megaproject utilizing technologies which are not under development by private industry yet. KESTSGEO involves great changes in many things, and change is stressful to people. So, private industry businessmen are intensely treating this conceptual project with a very cold "ignore it and it will go away" rivalry process, and have been doing successfully so for more than a dozen years so far. But the American public, indeed the worldwide public, would do well to consider what is best for all concerned in the long run, and find ways to make it happen. An enormous thriving of business in a healthily greatly expanding civilization awaits. What do you desire in your future, and that of your loved ones? Yes, you can choose.

BASIC CONCEPTUAL DESIGN OF THE TRANSPORTATION SYSTEM

Envision the essence of an electric motor. Focus on the functional part where magnetic attraction-repulsion spatially synchronized forces produce relative motion between the stationary stator part and the armature moving part. Stretch this magnetic-mechanical interface loop perimeter so big that it encircles the whole Earth. Stretch it out to infill the shape of an elliptical orbital transfer trajectory between the radius of the Earth's surface up to the radius of Geostationary Earth Orbit. Interlock the armature segments and stator by magnetic levitation tracks to enable them to slide easily while restrained to motion along their common perimeter. Divide the armature into myriads of segments to form contrarotating laterally coupled mass streams, sliding along adjacent maglev tracks on the stator. In your imagination, input electrical power, get the armature moving as in a synchronous motor, thrusting against the mass of the earth. This electromagnetically accelerates the armature segment mass stream moving in a hard vacuum enclosed by the stator, sliding along the magnetic levitation tracks on the inside of the orbital transfer trajectory ellipse shaped stator. Accelerate the armature segment mass stream until it attains orbital transfer trajectory, say 10 km/sec at the ground terminal, the armature mass stream thus in free-fall trajectory. Then accelerate the armature even faster, say to twice orbital transfer velocity, so that the resultant outward centrifugal force (which is in the opposite direction to the force of Earth's gravitational field) supports the weight of stator mass plus payload carrying vehicles equal to the mass of the aggregate armature mass stream. Some kinds of payload can hitchhike along with the armature segments; but most payload needs to experience a much more sedate environment on its way from the ground up to GEO. So, put additional maglev tracks on the outer perimeter of the stator, slide spaceworthy railway cars along those tracks. Let these rail cars use inductive drag against the upward-boound sides of the armature mass streams to lift them up from the ground along the stator structure up to GEO. Later gently return them back to the earth surface again, with cargo from space resources and zero-gee hard vacuum processed materials. Thus we are widely opening up the pathways of commerce to space much as the railways opened up the interior of the US, a vast new way of moving things back then, no longer limited by horse drawn freight wagons. This time no longer limited by the incredibly energy- inefficient rocket transportation technology (a luxury the fossil fuel energy dependent system soon will no longer be able afford) thereby enabling a whole new way of existence for civilization. For an overall view diagram, see the figure at bottom of this page.

APPLICATIONS ENABLED BY THIS KIND OF TRANSPORTATION SYSTEM

For continued high quality survival, we soon will need access to vast new resources of clean abundant electrical energy, new ways to totally recycle hazardous waste products, new sources of economically recoverable raw materials, and much room to live and grow without further destruction of Earth's struggling interlinked ecosystem. "Thinking out of the box", outside the constraints of present-day often stagnant corporate business structure's permitted options, has produced this major reconfiguration of the way we apply known scientific and engineering principles to provide conceptualization of an interesting new kind of electric rail transportation technology that perhaps can make this all possible in our time, achieving the almost unthinkable: an energy-supported transportation structure, supported by the electromagnetically coupled armature segment mass stream kinetic energy stored circulating at tens of kilometers per second along maglev tracks within it, infilling the shape of an orbital transfer trajectory ellipse linking the earth surface radius with the radius of geostationary earth orbit, continuously lifting payload-carrying vehicles up and down the structure by inductively extracting some of the same upward-bound armature mass stream kinetic energy stored within that Earth-encircling centrifugally-supported structure. The actual energy added to payload by moving it from the ground to GEO is not as much as one would think, it is only 7.15 kWhr per pound, about 72 cents per pound at 10 cents per kWhr rates; all the rest of the expense is caused by inefficiencies. Here is an evolving description of such a possible transportation technology which seems potentially capable of doing these things, and some key desperately needed applications it enables such as adequate Solar Electric Power Satellites, in as much detail as possible by the author writing under adverse conditions..