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From: mangoe@umcp-cs.UUCP (Charley Wingate)
Newsgroups: net.space
Subject: Re: Electromagnetic Launch
Message-ID: <3169@umcp-cs.UUCP>
Date: Wed, 12-Feb-86 01:15:28 EST
Article-I.D.: umcp-cs.3169
Posted: Wed Feb 12 01:15:28 1986
Date-Received: Wed, 12-Feb-86 22:02:19 EST
References: <15500@apple.UUCP>
Distribution: na
Organization: U of Maryland, Computer Science Dept., College Park, MD
Lines: 20

In article <15500@apple.UUCP> mikes@apple.UUCP writes:
>>  A last point I would like to 
>>make is you do not have to limit yourself to mountains.  With modern
>>structural materials one can build towers that literally extend out of
>>the atmosphere.

>	This is GREAT!  Let's just build an elevator to outer space!  Just
>climb in, punch the button for floor 39,254 , and jump off!  (We should note
>that this was tried once before, in biblical times. :-)

>	(I wonder how many stories tall you'd have to go to get to
>geostationary orbit? That would be some elevator panel! :=)

Too late.  As with many other space developments, Arthur C. Clarke has
already explored the idea-- in this case, in the novel _The Fountains of
Paradise_.  It also contains lots of local color (from Sri Lanka, where
else?).  Suffers from all the late Clarke flaws, but an interesting
technical piece nonetheless.

C. Wingate