DARPA Phoenix Program

This concept video explains DARPA's Phoenix program, which seeks to develop technologies to cooperatively harvest and re-use valuable components from retired, nonworking satellites in GEO (GEO--22,000 miles above the earth). The goal is to demonstrate the ability to create new space systems at greatly reduced cost compared to developing, building and launching brand new replacement satellites. More info may be found here: http://go.usa.gov/9tC

Category:

Science & Technology

Tags:

• DARPA
• space
• animation
• Robot
• Technology
• Electronics

[andrespereyda]

that's interesting, but i want to help our government with quantum physics (antigravity, teleportation, materialization, force fields, etc)

[bosskid71]

@chassoto @chassoto Ahh ive heard of those, i think they are called mass drivers. another problem is that would cost alot of money. to have enough length of track for orbit would be pretty expensive. but if we could do that we could send alot of raw material for large scale space vehicles. building them in space then sending somthing lk the russian soyouz for the crew. that would work well with the plan of an orbiting fuel depot.

[singedrac]

@Ropemancer It's too expensive to take the thing to earth. There isn't enough fuel.

[chassoto]

@bosskid71 For most (non "booster") rocket motors, water IS the fuel. Also, you're thinking about weaponized "gauss cannons." There have been ideas to have magnetic launch vehicles run up the side of a mountain or out of an underground silo (think the old sci-fi movie "When Worlds Collide" though they used a "rocket plane" design). The problem with those vehicles is they generate a lot of G-forces, so they're not appropriate for sensitive things (like humans). Water doesn't care.

[Ropemancer]

@singedrac Ok, now it's more clear to me. But what with those detached antennae? Are they plan to build a new sattelite right up there, or what? From this video a saw a few antenaes placed in space but what for? Thanx in advance. :)

[singedrac]

@bosskid71 Fuel can be water! LOX and LH2 are commonly used as fuel in rockets, or they can power a fuel cell with the output as water. Not to mention, water itself can be a useful reaction mass.

Anyway, there've been proposals to make orbital railguns. I don't think there's any serious technological limitations in doing so, it just hasn't been done. It wouldn't work with humans or other delicate things, perhaps not even with your usual sat. But big tanks of homogenous material? Sure!

[singedrac]

@Ropemancer It's cheaper to leave the bulk of the retired satellite at GEO. The costs saved here are the antennae that don't have to be brought out of the well because they're already outt. The most expensive thing about satellites is getting them up there in the first place.

Normal "space junk" is a serious problem, but that's more for objects in the LEO neighborhood, which is way closer than GEO. But if this proposal gets off the ground, so to speak, this would be perfect technology for that.

[bosskid71]

@chassoto wait do u mean fuel or water? both could be usefull up there but one major problem is the railgun would be quite masive to launch anything sizable enough lk most railguns launch small projectiles only around a few pounds or so. still not bad idea though

[Ropemancer]

I don't get. Why not take the whole thing to the earth?

[Greichen]

Awaiting the SyFy original special:

The DARPA SATELLITE HAS GONE ROGUE! It's cannibalising the ISS! A small group of astronauts left to try and stop the machine before there's nowhere safe left on the station. In the third act we discover what the Phoenix was using the parts to create! HORRIBLE REVELATION!

Starring: A couple people you recognize from various Star Treks/ Babylon 5/ Star Gate/ and that one guys that's in a bunch of things and you just can't remember his name.