Space Elevator Tether Competition
The single most difficult task in building the Space Elevator is achieving the required tether strength-to-weight ratio -- in other words, developing a material that is both strong enough and light enough to support the 60,000 mile long tether.
Compared to the best commercially available tether, we need a material that is almost 25 times better - about as great a leap as from wood to metal. Quite a tall order!
Luckily for us, about 10 years ago a new material was discovered, one that has the potential of fulfilling these seemingly impossible requirements. The material, Carbon Nanotubes, is only now becoming available from laboratories in its raw form in sufficient quantities.
The task ahead is to weave these raw CNTs into a useful form - a space worthy climable ribbon.
