Ray Wonder
Founder of the Wounded Tagless Children
Do they wait until they're over the ocean and just dump the collective shit of everyone into it
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Future skyscraper will hang from an Asteroid (Cloud City!)
- Thread starter Kimawolf
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Ray Wonder
Founder of the Wounded Tagless Children
Flat earthers, explain that one
Some engineering considerations
-putting the skyscraper in place, do you build it on the end of the cable, or do you lower it from the asteroid
-orbits are fast as fuck, skyscraper should be built to be able to move at least as quickly as a jet plane
-protection against any interference that could cause the asteroid to derail or the skyscraper to swing
-the surface of the Earth is not of uniform height, how low is safe?
-how do I move in, exactly?
-water
-getting permits in multiple jurisdictions (this is the hardest one obv)
-putting the skyscraper in place, do you build it on the end of the cable, or do you lower it from the asteroid
-orbits are fast as fuck, skyscraper should be built to be able to move at least as quickly as a jet plane
-protection against any interference that could cause the asteroid to derail or the skyscraper to swing
-the surface of the Earth is not of uniform height, how low is safe?
-how do I move in, exactly?
-water
-getting permits in multiple jurisdictions (this is the hardest one obv)
thecouncil
Banned
That's not Cloud City. They already invented "Cloud City".
Here's an absolutely dreadful rendering of that:
Here's an absolutely dreadful rendering of that:
SolidusDave
Member
Assuming a normal working schedule and people wanting to spend some time in the city before returning, the thing has to either travel only at night or move very fast to be back to pick up the people after work. Like, faster than a jet.
Now imagine the amount of fuel needed to accelerate and decelerate a big asteroid every few hours.
Oh and it must suuuuuuck to wake up late for work and realize that you are already over the pacific ocean...
Linkstrikesback
Member
This is what happens when you let architects work without consulting any scientists or engineers. Or at least not any relevant ones.
Seriously?
UpDownLeftRight
Banned
Who the fuck drew that concept?! Do they have any idea what an atmosphere is?
Extra Sauce
Member
What could go wrong.
Lots of good objections being brought up in this thread. First one I thought of?
Wind.
That thing is not going to have a stable ride. Also, it can't be meaningfully steered (cuz asteroid) so have fun when your apartment building (which is tethered to an orbiting asteroid and has no meaningful means of stabilization) gets dragged through a Cat 5 hurricane.
Also, the skyscraper would act as an enormous anchor on the asteroid, what with the constant atmospheric drag. There would be no way to stop the asteroid orbit from degrading. Orbital elevator designs rely on a geo locked orbit and counterweight to keep them stable. This thing would have neither.
Wind.
That thing is not going to have a stable ride. Also, it can't be meaningfully steered (cuz asteroid) so have fun when your apartment building (which is tethered to an orbiting asteroid and has no meaningful means of stabilization) gets dragged through a Cat 5 hurricane.
Also, the skyscraper would act as an enormous anchor on the asteroid, what with the constant atmospheric drag. There would be no way to stop the asteroid orbit from degrading. Orbital elevator designs rely on a geo locked orbit and counterweight to keep them stable. This thing would have neither.
ConfusingJazz
Member
I wouldn't hire this firm to do anything, because they obviously don't have an engineer on staff to consult before making proposals.
Space elevators are a high efficiency way of breaking Earth's orbit. VTOL shuttles would still use tons and tons of fuel to break orbit which hampers the ability to move people and resources into and out of Earth's atmosphere.
The idea of the elevator is to move things out of Earth's gravity so you can focus on moving through space in very little gravity more efficiently. Right now, getting resources from space to Earth and vice versa is not worth it due to fuel costs.
They're science fiction writers and not even very good ones at that.
BKatastrophe
Member
I'd live in an upside down space skyscraper
But not THAT one
But not THAT one
Woo-Fu
Banned
It is just a matter of materials science. Once you have the materials the rest of it isn't that hard.
Probably because you're not looking at the economics. If you were the one paying for each gram lifted to orbit you'd be a lot more interested in a space elevator.
This is functionally the same concept as the space elevator actually.
Indeed, space elevator is basically a tension bridge but strictly speaking it does not need to be attached to Earth if the cable has sufficient mass and length (gravity is enough).
EDIT AFAIK. I might be wrong. But if not, this would explain how anchoring a space elevator to floating ocean platforms would work... those are not attached anywhere after all (not really attached).
Indeed, space elevator is basically a tension bridge but strictly speaking it does not need to be attached to Earth if the cable has sufficient mass and length (gravity is enough).
EDIT AFAIK. I might be wrong. But if not, this would explain how anchoring a space elevator to floating ocean platforms would work... those are not attached anywhere after all (not really attached).
efyu_lemonardo
May I have a cookie?
These are actual architects? Who gave them a degree?
The Last Wizard
Member
So we the jetsons now?
A solid structure can make taking things (especially people) in orbit two or three orders of magnitude cheaper.
fastford58
Member
Uh...that's not how, um, stuff works.
DerZuhälter
Member
Early april fool's day gag?
I haven't heard of any space elevator concept that would "take a daily journey between the northern and southern hemispheres with a prolonged visit over New York City or Dubai".
Spiritwalker
Member
Thanks, I needed a good laugh.
Revolutionary
Member
This is the dumbest thing I've read in a while.
- Ostentatious to the point of impracticality
- Ridiculous waste of resources for minimal gain beyond one-upmanship
- Insanely dangerous to other people and civilisation at large
Can they make that thing orbit between Washington, New York and Mar-a-Lago? In that case, say hello to the next White House, peasants of Earth.
- Ridiculous waste of resources for minimal gain beyond one-upmanship
- Insanely dangerous to other people and civilisation at large
Can they make that thing orbit between Washington, New York and Mar-a-Lago? In that case, say hello to the next White House, peasants of Earth.
Elfotografoalocado
Banned
The drag from the skyscraper itself would be insane, so this would basically mean purposefully crashing a huge asteroid on Earth.
Going by the consideration to humanity that companies tend to display, I wouldn't put it past them.
Going by the consideration to humanity that companies tend to display, I wouldn't put it past them.
Make a space elevator instead goddamit, it makes much more sense.
Expect this Wikipedia page to grow significantly
Scary thing is, this isn't the stupidest thing I've read this week.
Forerunner
Member
Wouldn't it be easier if you just lived on the asteroid?
David Incorporated Esq.
Member
Not a bad idea to use an asteroid for a space elevator counterweight though.
I guess if you had one just laying around already in orbit.
Finding one, slowing it down and maneuvering into position seems like it would be 1000x harder than just lifting 100lbs at a time.
UpDownLeftRight
Banned
Oh... so they think an eccentric orbit will help? I guess they're unaware any eccentric orbit will just have an even faster speed as it passes at its closest point, the more eccentric the faster it shall pass since its essentially free falling into the gravity well.
One of only hundreds of reasons this is impossible and one of the dumbest ideas I've ever seen.
That's been standard design for sci-fi space elevators since the 40s.
Nah.
Once you're in orbit, you're halfway to any other place.
Getting out of the gravity well is the real hassle.
Host Samurai
Member
Capcom in 2012 would have made this the setting for Resident Evil 7.
How does the skyscraper overcome the frictional forces of the earth's atmosphere orbiting that close? If it was stationary, it would be slightly more believable.
Barring all the crazy challenges just to set this up, i think the biggest downfall of this concept is that even if the materials existed to make this work, you would have to be actively applying counter forces to overcome the insane amount of frictional forces.
If you used something like carbon nanotubes, their tensile strength is strong enough, but the building would just skip along the earth's atmosphere like a skipping stone on water.
There is no state where the building is in equilibrium with it's environment, so the energy it would take just to sustain it's orbit and keep it from decaying would be crazy indeed.
Barring all the crazy challenges just to set this up, i think the biggest downfall of this concept is that even if the materials existed to make this work, you would have to be actively applying counter forces to overcome the insane amount of frictional forces.
If you used something like carbon nanotubes, their tensile strength is strong enough, but the building would just skip along the earth's atmosphere like a skipping stone on water.
There is no state where the building is in equilibrium with it's environment, so the energy it would take just to sustain it's orbit and keep it from decaying would be crazy indeed.
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