OOSA seemed heaven sent. He was flattered being invited to take over
from the retiring Director and the employment package was substantial. The
offer stroked his ego and he was attracted by the kudos it would bring.
He sighed. ‘I was
honoured when OOSA approached me. So honoured, I couldn’t refuse.’
‘Of course!’ Rebecca
said, and Carlos caught a note of admiration in her voice.
‘And I was inspired by
the mission. To promote international cooperation in the peaceful use of outer
space and to help developing countries by making space technology more easily
available. As long as I’m here, I’m committed to driving these initiatives
forward.’
Rebecca smiled. ‘Now tell me about the
Space Elevator,’ and she shifted forward on her seat. ‘What is it
exactly?’
‘The concept is simple.
You stretch a ribbon from an ocean-based station at the Earth’s equator and
counterweight it around 100,000 kilometres up in space. Lifter vehicles,
powered from the ground by lasers, climb the ribbon. Each lifter vehicle has a
maximum weight payload and will transport parts and people up and down the
ribbon, to construct anything from satellites to space stations.’
‘Incredible. 100,000
kilometres long! And how wide will it be?’
‘Just a few
centimetres.’
‘But how can a ribbon
that slim lift such huge weights?’
‘It’s high-strength,
low-weight material. It’ll be made from carbon nanotubes mixed with polymers.
It has the potential to be one hundred times stronger than steel. As I said,
the concept is simple but the engineering is revolutionary.’
‘That I can believe! And
LiftPort was created to develop this concept commercially? To build the first
Space Elevator?’
‘Correct. The first
lift’s scheduled for the early 2030s.’
Rebecca continued asking questions about the Space Elevator and although Carlos
enjoyed talking to her – he liked her freshness and enthusiasm –
uppermost in his mind was anxiety about the e-mails.
She sensed his
distraction. ‘I’m nearly finished,’ she said, biting the inside of her lip and
looking up at him from under her lashes, ‘just a couple more questions. What
practical help will the Space Elevator be once it’s commissioned?’
‘Firstly it will
dramatically reduce the cost of getting payloads into space and secondly it
will benefit many industries – from telecommunications to pharmaceuticals
– as well as creating some completely new markets.’
‘And how does OOSA fit
in?’
‘We’ll act as a watchdog
to ensure potential disputes between countries wanting to use the elevator and
the frequency of its use, for example, are resolved fairly. We’ll also ensure
no monopolies are exercised and that it’s only used for peaceful purposes. Also
we’ll identify ways poorer countries can benefit from the new technology.’
‘That’s a broad
mandate,’ Rebecca said, and Carlos nodded.
‘ Sí , it is… it
will be tough.’
‘And what benefits do
you see the Space Elevator bringing to the world?’
‘It could give us a new
source of energy by lifting large solar arrays into space to create a
competitive source of clean, limitless and eco-friendly energy to be beamed
back to Earth.’
‘Amazing. Anything
else?’
‘Yes. Because the cost
of getting payloads into space will be halved and efficiency will be increased,
we can build more sophisticated and larger habitable space stations.’
‘For research?’
‘Not just that.’
‘You mean to colonise
space?’
‘ Sí . The stations
could be used should we ever need to evacuate the planet.’
Rebecca shuddered, ‘Now
you’re frightening me!’ and her brown eyes grew huge.
‘You’re right to be
scared,’ Carlos said, ‘there’s no reason to believe our planet can support
human life indefinitely. We’re just one species inhabiting it – an
intelligent species for sure – but just a species,’ and yet again he
thought of Zul. ‘Whether we’ll survive all the natural
from the retiring Director and the employment package was substantial. The
offer stroked his ego and he was attracted by the kudos it would bring.
He sighed. ‘I was
honoured when OOSA approached me. So honoured, I couldn’t refuse.’
‘Of course!’ Rebecca
said, and Carlos caught a note of admiration in her voice.
‘And I was inspired by
the mission. To promote international cooperation in the peaceful use of outer
space and to help developing countries by making space technology more easily
available. As long as I’m here, I’m committed to driving these initiatives
forward.’
Rebecca smiled. ‘Now tell me about the
Space Elevator,’ and she shifted forward on her seat. ‘What is it
exactly?’
‘The concept is simple.
You stretch a ribbon from an ocean-based station at the Earth’s equator and
counterweight it around 100,000 kilometres up in space. Lifter vehicles,
powered from the ground by lasers, climb the ribbon. Each lifter vehicle has a
maximum weight payload and will transport parts and people up and down the
ribbon, to construct anything from satellites to space stations.’
‘Incredible. 100,000
kilometres long! And how wide will it be?’
‘Just a few
centimetres.’
‘But how can a ribbon
that slim lift such huge weights?’
‘It’s high-strength,
low-weight material. It’ll be made from carbon nanotubes mixed with polymers.
It has the potential to be one hundred times stronger than steel. As I said,
the concept is simple but the engineering is revolutionary.’
‘That I can believe! And
LiftPort was created to develop this concept commercially? To build the first
Space Elevator?’
‘Correct. The first
lift’s scheduled for the early 2030s.’
Rebecca continued asking questions about the Space Elevator and although Carlos
enjoyed talking to her – he liked her freshness and enthusiasm –
uppermost in his mind was anxiety about the e-mails.
She sensed his
distraction. ‘I’m nearly finished,’ she said, biting the inside of her lip and
looking up at him from under her lashes, ‘just a couple more questions. What
practical help will the Space Elevator be once it’s commissioned?’
‘Firstly it will
dramatically reduce the cost of getting payloads into space and secondly it
will benefit many industries – from telecommunications to pharmaceuticals
– as well as creating some completely new markets.’
‘And how does OOSA fit
in?’
‘We’ll act as a watchdog
to ensure potential disputes between countries wanting to use the elevator and
the frequency of its use, for example, are resolved fairly. We’ll also ensure
no monopolies are exercised and that it’s only used for peaceful purposes. Also
we’ll identify ways poorer countries can benefit from the new technology.’
‘That’s a broad
mandate,’ Rebecca said, and Carlos nodded.
‘ Sí , it is… it
will be tough.’
‘And what benefits do
you see the Space Elevator bringing to the world?’
‘It could give us a new
source of energy by lifting large solar arrays into space to create a
competitive source of clean, limitless and eco-friendly energy to be beamed
back to Earth.’
‘Amazing. Anything
else?’
‘Yes. Because the cost
of getting payloads into space will be halved and efficiency will be increased,
we can build more sophisticated and larger habitable space stations.’
‘For research?’
‘Not just that.’
‘You mean to colonise
space?’
‘ Sí . The stations
could be used should we ever need to evacuate the planet.’
Rebecca shuddered, ‘Now
you’re frightening me!’ and her brown eyes grew huge.
‘You’re right to be
scared,’ Carlos said, ‘there’s no reason to believe our planet can support
human life indefinitely. We’re just one species inhabiting it – an
intelligent species for sure – but just a species,’ and yet again he
thought of Zul. ‘Whether we’ll survive all the natural
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