Timeline for How would you slow down a large object traveling through space?
Current License: CC BY-SA 4.0
34 events
| when toggle format | what | by | license | comment | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Apr 5, 2021 at 20:04 | comment | added | Robbie Goodwin | If you send loose ingots towards Earth, you will lose most of the matter to atmospheric friction. The same will true for any body with similar gravity and atmosphere. That will happen however much you slow anything down, as long as the ingots are loose… even if you shape them into something like aeroplanes. If your ingots are not loose, can you re-phrase the Question to take account of that? | |
| Apr 4, 2021 at 1:21 | answer | added | Mike Serfas | timeline score: 1 | |
| Apr 3, 2021 at 13:15 | answer | added | Mon | timeline score: 0 | |
| Mar 31, 2021 at 19:15 | comment | added | Andrew Morton | Don't forget the equal and opposite reaction on the mining station! | |
| Mar 31, 2021 at 18:31 | answer | added | TysonDennis | timeline score: -1 | |
| Mar 31, 2021 at 15:53 | answer | added | Rob | timeline score: 2 | |
| Mar 31, 2021 at 12:27 | comment | added | Fattie | Welcome new user! One quick idea - actually deliberately LET THEM SMASH IN TO .. our moon. Then it is "relatively easy" for us to hop up to the moon and get them, perhaps doing some sizing there as needed. Nice idea! The fireworks at night would be spectacular! | |
| Mar 31, 2021 at 6:56 | answer | added | Corey | timeline score: 1 | |
| Mar 31, 2021 at 6:26 | answer | added | Frank | timeline score: -1 | |
| Mar 31, 2021 at 3:12 | comment | added | GrandmasterB | User smaller ingots? This way if you miss with one, you don't take out a city. | |
| Mar 30, 2021 at 20:22 | answer | added | user84572 | timeline score: 1 | |
| Mar 30, 2021 at 16:32 | answer | added | Darrel Hoffman | timeline score: 5 | |
| Mar 30, 2021 at 8:29 | answer | added | toolforger | timeline score: 3 | |
| Mar 30, 2021 at 8:09 | answer | added | Vincent | timeline score: 13 | |
| Mar 30, 2021 at 4:28 | answer | added | Stilez | timeline score: 0 | |
| Mar 30, 2021 at 4:21 | comment | added | jamesqf | 2-3 tons at planetary velocities does not produce an extinction level. The Chelyabinsk meteor massed an estimated 13-14 THOUSAND tons, and basically just broke a lot of windows: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chelyabinsk_meteor | |
| Mar 30, 2021 at 3:09 | review | First posts | |||
| Mar 30, 2021 at 4:38 | |||||
| Mar 30, 2021 at 2:29 | history | became hot network question | |||
| Mar 30, 2021 at 2:09 | answer | added | Duncan Urquhart | timeline score: 6 | |
| Mar 30, 2021 at 2:00 | comment | added | puppetsock | Orbital velocities are 10s of km/s. Typical artillery shell muzzle velocity is under 1 km/s. This means your kinetic energy is at least 100 times an average artillery shell, much more if the orbit is not opportune. Any answer that does not take that into account is misleading you. | |
| Mar 29, 2021 at 23:38 | answer | added | Willk | timeline score: 16 | |
| Mar 29, 2021 at 22:57 | comment | added | Justin Thyme the Second | 2-3 tons of metal is not a very big slug. There are bullets used in naval guns and such that are bigger. Schwerer Gustav "...and could fire shells weighing 7 t (7.7 short tons) to a range of 47 km (29 mi).[1] " en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Schwerer_Gustav | |
| Mar 29, 2021 at 21:31 | answer | added | user64888 | timeline score: 2 | |
| Mar 29, 2021 at 20:35 | answer | added | LSerni | timeline score: 8 | |
| Mar 29, 2021 at 19:17 | answer | added | Starfish Prime | timeline score: 36 | |
| Mar 29, 2021 at 19:11 | comment | added | Allan | hit the moon instead.--add in travel velocity as well so energy can be calculated | |
| Mar 29, 2021 at 19:09 | vote | accept | random internet person | ||
| Mar 29, 2021 at 19:06 | history | edited | random internet person | CC BY-SA 4.0 |
added 40 characters in body
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| Mar 29, 2021 at 18:53 | answer | added | MolbOrg | timeline score: 1 | |
| Mar 29, 2021 at 18:47 | comment | added | Matthew | Lithobraking. Or cryohydrobraking. I remember reading a story in which one of the main characters was engaged in a side business of surreptitiously sending "packages" from orbit which, IIRC, were directed to "land" on the side of a snow-covered mountain. Really, though, the short answer is send them in small enough bits that simply crashing them isn't an issue. | |
| Mar 29, 2021 at 18:40 | comment | added | PcMan | Shoot them at something that is much bigger, and does not mind getting whacked, repeatedly. But there is no "slow down" in space. There is only "speed up" and a chosen direction. slowing down by "speeding up" in the reverse direction is exactly as hard as speeding up directly. | |
| Mar 29, 2021 at 18:37 | answer | added | Nuclear Hoagie | timeline score: 9 | |
| Mar 29, 2021 at 18:34 | comment | added | Duncan Drake | Do you really NEED them to reach Earth? How about orbital foundries? Kinetic energy could be converted into heat.... | |
| Mar 29, 2021 at 18:24 | history | asked | random internet person | CC BY-SA 4.0 |