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China plans to build a giant rail gun to launch hypersonic planes into space (www.scmp.com)

submitted 6 months ago by [email protected] to c/[email protected]

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[–] [email protected] 0 points 6 months ago (1 children)

Why is this in NTO?

There are a great many methods to lowering costs for launch vehicles, this is just one of them.

Honestly this isn't nearly as "crazy" or out there as putting a super fast spinning arm in a vacuum chamber (think super sized centrifuge on its side) and letting go when it will launch the payload upward.

As to whether this will work with human passengers and let them survive the trip? I'm sure with a long enough track, sure.

I'm sure plenty of abandoned projects from the past have merit now that relevant tech has improved.

Hell, just look at electric planes. Axial flux motors. That stuff wasn't around when I was a kid, and people dubbed such things impossible.

[–] [email protected] 0 points 6 months ago

Indeed, especially if you have favourable geography, incl. being as high as possible near the equator.