Scientists in Japan are developing a ‘space elevator’ with the aim of connecting the earth and the space. The equipment, produced by researchers at Shizuoka University will be launch this week. It will be on the H-2B rocket being launched by Japan’s space agency from southern island of Tanegashima.
A miniature elevator roughly the size of two match boxes – six centimetres (2.4 inches) long, three centimetres wide, and three centimetres high – will be on the satellite. It will slide up and down a 10-meter cable, suspended in space between two miniature satellites and monitored on camera.
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The miniature elevator is Japan’s first step toward achieving a much bigger dream: a fully-fledged space elevator, with a lift shaft that shoots 60,000 miles (96,500 kilometers) above sea level, to be used by astronauts and space tourists alike.
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If all goes well, the Japanese experiment this week, will provide proof of concept by moving along a 10-metre cable suspended in space between two mini satellites that will keep it taut. The mini-elevator will travel along the cable from a container in one of the satellites, the AFP reported.
The company has said it could use carbon nanotube technology, which is more than 20 times stronger than steel, to build a lift shaft 96,000 kilometres (roughly 60,000 miles) above the Earth.
The firm hopes it will transport people and shipment to a new space station. It will also work as a port to transport astronauts to Mars and beyond.
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