Re: MARS HYBRID DESIGN II (First Draft)

[kgstar@most.fw.hac.com (Kelly Starks x7066 MS 10-39)]

At 4:12 PM 3/4/96, Brian Mansur wrote:
> ----------
>From: David
>To: Kelly Starks x7066 MS 10-39
>Cc: Brian Mansur; hous0042; KellySt; lparker; rddesign; Steve VanDevender;
>T.L.G.vanderLinden
>Subject: Re: MARS HYBRID DESIGN II (First Draft)
>Date: Monday, March 04, 1996 4:35PM
>
>Brian 4:08 CT 3/4/96
>
>Kelly Starks x7066 MS 10-39 wrote:
>> Thats a very long time to wait around for first initial survey reports!
> At
>> 61 years (2111) you'ld get you first report back from Tau.
>
>Brian:
>Actually, it will take 50 years.  That assumes 35 to 40 years from the time
>of the deceleration mirror launch to the final deceleration of the Asimov.
> Remember that the Asimov will be launching just 15 to 25 years after the
>reflector has been sent up before it.  After final deceleration and
>exploration begins, the first survey reports will be received 12 years later
>around the year 2100 (assuming a decel reflector launch date of 2050 which I
>am not).

Opps, were sorry.

>I would like to point out that I haven't seen an answer to my question about
>the doplar shift effect on a fast moving reflector.  If the doplar effect
>simply decreases efficiency of the beam before it reaches the Asimov, that
>can be compensated for by using more power.  Of course that means building
>more solar panels and masers but then I'm assuming increadible automation
>capability where there is virtually no human cost.

Don't have numbers, but yes the shift will whipe out most of the power.


>>Kelly:
>>If you were
>> that patient, you wern't that interested.  You might as well have just
>done
>> photo recon from orbiting 1000 kilometer telescope arrays.  You'ld get a
>> lot of the data, 60 years earlier.
>>
>> If your 60 years patent, you probably arn't interested enough to pay the
>> big bill for this stuff.
>
>>David:
>>I agree.  If you launch a mission that will not return
>>scientific results in your lifetime (assume you are in your
>>30s or 40s when you send the mission off), most people would
>>probably just say "why not let them do it -then-, instead?"
>
>>The payoff is too distant for most corporations, and the
>>bill too big for governments to justify to the people when
>>considering the length of time involved.
>
>Brian:
>Who was that one European prince that started looking for a route to India
>by sailing around Africa?  Didn't it take about 50 years for his dream to
>come true.  And that after he died?  Of course most of us aren't that
>patient.

They never made it to China.  Ironicly the Chineese were coming around the
other side of Africa at the same time.  They gave up because the outside
world was full of infearious that wern't worth talking to.  (The government
also though sailers were to uppity.)  So they never made it to europe.

None of them of course is used to the tech of ten years from now being
drasticly better than that of now.  We KNOW we will be able to do it much
better later.

>David:
>>If we can't do it faster, we're not going to do it.
>
>Brian:
>This lack of patience on the part of human society is starting really to bug
>me.  Of course I've no right to complain seeing as how I should have been
>patient enough to do my Calculus before replying to these e-mails.

Its not a limitation.  Its just not trying to be stupid and wastfull.

>>David:
>>Too bad we don't have a target system with already-contacted
>>ETs.  Deceleration seems to be our biggest problem.  They
>>could construct an in-system maser decelerator... Of course,
>>assuming they trusted us.  I don't know what we'd do if an
>>alien civilization contacted us and asked us to build a maser
>>array to decelerate their spacecraft.
>
>Perhaps let them come but I'd certainly make sure that they'd have to go
>through serious customs checks before we let them anywhere near Earth.
> Can't have illegal aliens running about now can we?


;)


Kelly


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Kelly Starks                       Internet: kgstar@most.fw.hac.com
Sr. Systems Engineer
Magnavox Electronic Systems Company
(Magnavox URL: http://www.fw.hac.com/external.html)

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