Foundations of Liquid Space Optics for Astronomy, Solar Power Satellites and Interplanetary Shuttles J. H. Bloomer! Invited Review Summary: Energy of the sun and stars is vast, as is the raw material of the planets. But how can we use these resources? Can they be concentrated, converted and transported? How can the abundant energy in space be used for interplanetary propulsion, mining the planets and week ending on their moons, and enriching mankind beyond its wildest dreams—in agriculture, medicine, construction, education, leisure, space exploration, ecology, and economy? Already we are used to concentrating and controlling the energy of stars, passively, and our tool is the telescope. But every optical instrument is reversible. The telescope can as well send as receive. However, the cost of such a conventional space telescope as we'd need for sending out converted solar energy (and we'd need it in space, in orbit) would be enormous. However, the tool of the orbital aluminized mylar solarcollecting mirror for concentrating solar energy in space has been demonstrated since the mid-sixties, as has the laser, for supplying converted solar energy in narrow, tight, efficient, long range beams—the bigger your sending telescope diameter, the "tighter" (or longer range) the beams. So we're back to the telescope, or its optics. That's the stumbling block. This present article proposes that the solution lies in application of some space research of the sixties that emerged in connection with the Apollo Moon-landing Project. This research, unremarkably enough, had to do with the chore of identifying the location of liquid hydrogen fuel in an Apollo second-stage rocket fuel tank, in zero gravity. It will be shown herein how potentially to apply that research—in terms of what I call "The Fundamental Expression of Liquid Space Optics"—along with some other of our scientific history's hard-won lore on liquids, space, optics, propulsion and energy, to selfconstruct at ultimately less than zero cost (i.e., turn a handsome profit in the bargain)-the required orbital, optical tools. Those tools—orbital telescope optics and laser end-mirrors, as it turns out-promise to be super large, super low cost (or negative in cost) and at the same time, super high precision, according to a succession of brainstorms or inventions of this author, as laid out collectively in the following treatise. All are intended for the public domain as "loss leaders," or non-proprietary, i.e., free-for-all, intellectual properties. Introduction, Beilby Layers An optical method of collecting/handling/transporting energy of nearby stellar sources (in arbitrary quantity for arbitrary wavelength range) continuously in space for terminals in space and on associated nearby planetary surfaces, is desired. Radially and transversely moving or stationary terminals, within practical cost/time-frame/engineering limitations, would be necessary. t DISCRAFT Corp., Portland, OR 97233 Copyright ©1994 by John H. Bloomer. Published by Space Power with permission.
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