[AR] Re: OT laser propulsion and power satellites
- From: Keith Henson <hkeithhenson@xxxxxxxxx>
- To: arocket@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
- Date: Fri, 25 Oct 2013 11:44:36 -0700
For Skylon, you also have a landing problem. There are not many
places along the equator with a big expanse of ocean to the east which
you need for a propulsion laser miss. Brazil near the mouth of the
Amazon, Somalia (or maybe Kenya), the Maldives and Kiribati are about
the list. As for landings (3 times an hour), you probably don't want
an area with big thunderstorms. Reaction Engines is defaulting to
French Guiana.
For the proposed microwave link to get the propulsion lasers started,
you need a location where you can draw 12 GW off the grid ~ 2000 km to
the east from the launch site, though it can be north or south a good
deal.
The best may be Kiribati. It's not on the equator, but close enough
that the Skylons can fly there while gaining altitude and speed. The
microwave transmitter would be in Southern California, where you could
tap the grid for that much power (at least part of the time).
If China is doing it (and the US is not involved), then the Maldives
might be the next best launch point. If the EU is doing it, Brazil or
Guiana. Cross range and orbital energy consideration become important,
how important is a bit beyond me. Perhaps someone with a lot of
Shuttle knowledge might be able to help.
Keith
On Fri, Oct 25, 2013 at 10:37 AM, Henry Spencer <henry@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx> wrote:
> On Wed, 23 Oct 2013, Keith Henson wrote:
>> What's most interesting to me about that map is the cold water along
>> the equator to the [west] of South America. Makes for few clouds and
>> good flying on laser...
>
> Few clouds, well, that depends. Cold water can also cause condensation in
> humid air blowing in from warmer parts.
>
> That tongue of cold surface water is from the cold current that comes up
> the Chilean coast. The Galapagos is in there -- it's the little clump of
> specks west of South America on the map -- which gives it a fairly
> pleasant climate despite being smack on the equator (I was there in August
> ten years ago, and we often needed light jackets). It does get quite a
> bit of sun, but it also gets fairly frequent cloud and drizzle.
>
> Note also that there is some seasonal variation. The Galapagos has a
> rainy season, roughly Jan.-April, in which the water is warm and the
> weather is the usual hot/sticky/wet equatorial conditions.
>
> Henry Spencer
> henry@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
> (hspencer@xxxxxxxxxxxxx)
> (regexpguy@xxxxxxxxx)
>
>
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