Comment Re:The Endeavor to the Rescue? (Score 2, Interesting) 246
To quote "FAllen Angels" (Thanks Jerry P!) "It's all a matter of delta-v.".
Both the ISS (and currently Endeavor) are in low Earth orbit, as is the alleged satellite. Still, it ain't like you can just say "Houston, kin I borrow the keys to the shuttle tonight?". Besides, there aren't ANY gas stations up there for that baby.
I much prefer the solution that was used recently on a U.S. satellite that lost one of it's positioning motors. The engineers found that they could use an on-board electric motor to generate a magnetic field that would push against the Earth's magnetosphere....thereby turing the satellite. Bravo guys! And since it's powered by the solar cells, it'll last lot longer than the fuel supply for the original motor. Gee...we should build them ALL that way.
After all, the 1K needs only to reach a more elliptical orbit in order to start moving on out. Fire that puppy up and get it's batteries charged. Heck, considering the field strentgh needed, it would probably have to rotate and "flap" every antenna and panel it has. I can't escape the picture of that thing trying to "swim" it's way into orbit.....ah the irony...
Both the ISS (and currently Endeavor) are in low Earth orbit, as is the alleged satellite. Still, it ain't like you can just say "Houston, kin I borrow the keys to the shuttle tonight?". Besides, there aren't ANY gas stations up there for that baby.
I much prefer the solution that was used recently on a U.S. satellite that lost one of it's positioning motors. The engineers found that they could use an on-board electric motor to generate a magnetic field that would push against the Earth's magnetosphere....thereby turing the satellite. Bravo guys! And since it's powered by the solar cells, it'll last lot longer than the fuel supply for the original motor. Gee...we should build them ALL that way.
After all, the 1K needs only to reach a more elliptical orbit in order to start moving on out. Fire that puppy up and get it's batteries charged. Heck, considering the field strentgh needed, it would probably have to rotate and "flap" every antenna and panel it has. I can't escape the picture of that thing trying to "swim" it's way into orbit.....ah the irony...
