History Main / SpaceElevator

* A space elevator enables the premise of Frank Schätzing's novel ''Limit''. (Which is: The worthwhile mining for Helium-3 on the moon.)

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** Another one is destroyed above Earth by the [[SuperSoldier Spartans]] during thr fight with the [[ScaryDogmaticAliens Covenant]].

The best materials science we have today tells us that the only known material with a high enough strength-to-weight ratio would be carbon nanotube cable. We don't have the ability to manufacture it in the lengths needed. Yet. Other theoretical methods include dynamic-support, essentially a stream of magnetized bullets whose momentum pushes up the cable. The idea is surprisingly plausible from a physics standpoint, is judged as medium-hard on the [[MohsScaleOfSciFiHardness Mohs Scale]], and would, once the construction cost was paid off, reduce the cost of putting payloads into orbit. [[ArthurCClarke It's been said]] that we could have a working space elevator about 50 years after everyone stopped laughing. Most of them have.

*** Considering the resources terrorist organizations generally have at their disposal, they'd be hard pressed to launch an attack over ten thousand miles above the Earth's surface. For a sufficiently powerful attack to be carried up on the elevator itself, security would have to be appallingly bad.

* One ''{{xkcd}}'' comic suggests that, since a space elevator will be built 10 years after everyone stops laughing, all we have to do is put ''{{Mind of Mencia}}'' [[TakeThat on every channel]] and wait.

The best materials science we have today tells us that the only known material with a high enough strength-to-weight ratio would be carbon nanotube cable. We don't have the ability to manufacture it in the lengths needed. Yet. Other theoretical methods include dynamic-support, essentially a stream of magnetized bullets whose momentum pushes up the cable. The idea is surprisingly plausible from a physics standpoint, is judged as medium-hard on the [[MohsScaleOfSciFiHardness Mohs Scale]], and would, once the construction cost was paid off, reduce the cost of putting payloads into orbit. [[ArthurCClarke It's been said]] that we could have a working space elevator about 50 years after everyone stopped laughing.

* It's a way to multiplanetary amusement park in ''SonicColors''.

* ''OldMansWar'' by JohnScalzi has a space elevator. Its center of mass is too low to be physically reasonable; this is used as an indication that the Colonial Union, who built it, is hiding technology up its sleeve.

* The ''{{Traveller}} 2300'' TabletopRPG had the "Beanstalk" adventure, which involved a SpaceElevator on the planet Beta Canum.

* ''MegaManX 8'''s problems eventually revolve around a Space Elevator. Sort of. As is typical for a MegaMan game, an entire level is built around riding the Space Elevator to the top.

*** Um... robots don't breathe, and X and Zero probably have [[BuffySpeak some kind of pressure/vacuum handling system... thing]], since they've gone really deep underwater, and in space before.

Many works of fiction suggest building a prototype on the Moon or Mars (before tackling Earth), as the lower gravity makes it easier (and safer in case something [[GoneHorriblyWrong goes wrong]]).

* In the TV speculative documentary titled "2057", predicts several of these by, well, [[ExactlyWhatItSaysOnTheTin 2057]]. Unfortunately, the screw it up by [[CriticalResearchFailure placing the base station only 300 kilometers up]]. Even more bizarre as they had a prominent phyicist (Michio Kaku) as host.