SPACECRAFT CATCH AND TOSS

摘要

At NASA, ideas for space travel move up the ladder. "You have to work your way up a series of tasks," Tenessee Tech mechanical engineer Steven Canfield tells us. "With MXER, we're on our way to level four or possibly five, where we'll test elements on the ground in a simulated environment and try to replicate the results." MXER (momentum-exchange electrodynamic reboost tether technology) is a rotating tether concept that can be implemented with technology that should be available within the next 5 years. It could provide the space transportation vehicle that is needed for cheaper travel.