🚀 go-pugleaf

IN article <4091@bloom-beacon.MIT.EDU>, jfc@athena.mit.edu (John F Carr) wrote:
> If we ever get a lot of energy out of them, we will need a cheaper launch
> system.  We will also use very large thin films to minimize weight and
> cost.  The SPS's will not be built if they are too expensive.  

I should think the cost of the SPS itself, and the cost of ongoing maintainence
in space, would be even more of a problem than launch costs.

> [...] Assuming international cooperation in space (else 
> the SPS is too vulnerable to attack) the SPS is more reliable than other
> systems, and has a greater thermal efficiency on earth.

I don't seriously consider a deliberate attack on a power sattellite a
likelyhood: that's an act of war.  But space debris would be a similar
problem.  These SPSs would be very large, and would have to have very long
operating lifetimes (>25 years?) due to cost.  Has there been any serious
efforts to consider problems & costs of building impact-tolerant sattellites?
Or is it not that bad (yet)?
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