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Not at all! It seems there is a gap between no longer needing Element X because it has been engineered out and no needing said element because they have their own, infinitely cheaper supply elsewhere.

I imagine it would be one of the metrics used in the go-nogo of whether to harvest an asteroid now or later. For one chosen as a "later" rock, we could equip a chosen 'roid with a solar sail or other means of slowing it down over time. That way, valuable asteroids could be marked with a...

It seems to be inviting a problem where one did not exist. Using your example (thank you!), mining cobalt is a nasty, vile, horrific business; better to put that sort of mess skyward rather than on Earth. And while a fictional Cobaltvania might have no legal recourse, that wouldn't stop them...

So far we have discussed engineering issues here, but another one not yet mentioned is the political aspect. The riches asteroids can provide is nigh incalculable; the trouble is how do we restrict those materials to in situ use in space? Sadly, many nations suffer from the Resource Curse...

Efficiency in development i would warrant. Towing, mining, position adjustment and more are all things that need to be learned and done; cost-wise, it is cheaper to do each of those in the same mission, and work out specifics later. As for launching a comparable rock- again, cost efficiency...

So, in a semi-sarcastic question... how many supporters does this bloated whale of a rocket still have in Congress, without Shelby's influence? And when they finally all go away, whether through voting out, retirement, or shuffling off the mortal coil, what are the chances that this thing...

If it can get traction, it could be (as the cliche goes) a game-changer beyond compare. And as a side benefit, such a tax might have little or no application to something made off planetary. Too soon to hope?

Or, if possible, rather than vent the environment completely, purge it instead in a manner similar to that used for LNG pipes-- sometime when it is an individual component, flood the module with nitrogen while leaving enough temperature control and such to avoid major system damage. Probably...

Unfortunate, and more than a bit sad. And not surprising at all. A most unfortunate lapse of reasoning on his part, or just someone trying to eek out a little insurance for their future retirement nest egg courtesy of selling corporate secrets to the highest bidder? It seems that the 'best...

An.... optimal reply, if you will.

...does this cross into supervillain territory? Goldfinger-esque reaches? Because the idea of the ULA sniper announcing/ getting the ideas from Ars is a little gobsmacking! Now all that is needed is a Fu Manchu...

Perhaps an odd question, but what exactly is the volume of space that makes up various "L" points? Obviously it isn't a precise place in space where only one orbital object sits as if on a gravity throne, but more similar to a Sargasso or pool of semi-stable gravity. The question then is how...

Parking it in some sort of 'awaiting launch window' would put age and strain on the satellites, including exposure to an extra year's worth of space. Also, you would be giving up the delta v that launching directly from Earth would supply. Even if they came through the waiting period, we would...

Would this be considered a sign of cognitive decline, or just that of someone really given to following whichever way the wind seems to blow? It has been a while, and I honestly do not remember if this was something that President Reagan suffered in the later years of his terms when undergoing...

RE: Orbital cleanup-- would that sort of thing be better approached through some manner of UN agency, national agencies, a civilian company, or some sort of combination of the whole? While certain countries might prefer a private or in-nation company to attend to such things, everyone knows...

One of the joys of online discussions! We live to serve... The rest of us are just AI's, Ponies, AI Ponies, and that one odd fellow who came over from some Texas weather place. ;)

Mmm. Glue balloon sound like a reasonable beginning, but wouldn't something akin to a gelpack or such be a better fit? Spherical shape and the room it take up seems like it would not be as necessary in a low-G/Zero-G environment that would exist in the pressure cell between outer and inner...

After some research and review (hail Dr. Google!), I can't honestly be completely sure. It seems most countries/regions take about 4-5 years to train an astronaut from the ground up, possibly including mission specific training. Roughly: basic training, intermediate, then advanced. By...

I prefer "Treasonous Colonial Day", if you please. 😁

Technically true, though (IIRC) a town somewhere, sometime ago collected the funds to pay the fine incurred from Australia. Definitely fact check me on that one. / 🧀brain