[ExI] Power satellites (was: Is Global Warming Junk Science?)

Keith Henson hkeithhenson at gmail.com
Tue Apr 21 19:06:31 UTC 2009


On Tue, Apr 21, 2009 at 9:16 AM, John K Clark <jonkc at bellsouth.net> wrote:
> "Keith Henson" <hkeithhenson at gmail.com>
>
>> critics of power satellites have said the energy payback will be terrible.
>> If you calculate it for rockets, which are about as inefficient as you can
>> get, the energy payback is around 100 days for lifting materials to GEO
>> (at 5kg/kW).  By the usual measure of such numbers (a number of years)
>> that's extremely good.  But it's possible I am the only one who has ever
>> run that calculation and I don't think anyone has checked it.
>
> I don't see the point of checking your calculation because it doesn't matter
> if it's right or wrong. The reason putting something into geosynchronous
> orbit is so astronomically expensive is not because of the high cost of
> rocket fuel.

Of course I agree with you.

How would you go about reducing the cost?

Keith



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