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From: ajw@hou2h.UUCP (A.WIENERS)
Newsgroups: net.followup
Subject: Alternate Energy & uWaves
Message-ID: <586@hou2h.UUCP>
Date: Tue, 14-Aug-84 16:25:32 EDT
Article-I.D.: hou2h.586
Posted: Tue Aug 14 16:25:32 1984
Date-Received: Wed, 15-Aug-84 01:24:21 EDT
Organization: AT&T Bell Labs, Holmdel NJ
Lines: 55

<<>>

>Ed Nather...
>The sun shines 24 hours/day everywhere, not just out in space, but it may
>be difficult to get a satellite far enough away from the earth so it never
>passes through its shadow, particularly if it is in synchronous orbit, which
>means it goes around once in 24 hours, and must therefore be at 25,000 miles
>altitute.

Clarke orbits generally have a 90-minute eclipse once a month, IF (notice
preceding word) my memory serves correctly.

>If the solar cells aren't there to convert the heat into electricity (i.e.
>make some use of 15% of it) then it will *all* go into the earth's bioshphere
>if it isn't reflected back into space.  The "saved" 15% will presumably get
>converted into work somewhere, which degrades into heat, which enters the
>earth's biosphere.  So where is the "waste?"

um...where to start?
solar constant		1 influx unit (IU - my unit for convienience)

clarke insolation	1 IU
ground insolation	0.16 IU (approx after atmos & night attenuation)

clarke&ground efficiencies 15% (disregarding dust!)
clarke generation .15 IU (waste heat -> space)
ground generation .0225 IU, .1375 IU waste heat

rectenna efficiency 70% (pessimisticly?)
clarke biosphere waste heat = .03 IU, about 1/4 of ground solar.
clarke delivered power = .1000 IU, .03/.1 = 30% waste/delivered
ground delivered power = .0225 IU, .14/.02 = 700% waste/delivered



>If the Sunsat is put up it will be bright enough to rival the full moon,
>just from reflected light alone (the moon reflects ~8%, is bigger but is
>*much* farther away, and the inverse-square law does a bit of good) ...
>which means ground-based astronomy goes out of business, since most of the
>interesting observations of quasars, distant galaxies, black hole candidates
>and vibrating stellar corpses are confined to "dark time," when the moon is
>nearly aligned with the sun and the night sky is dark.

I'll have to punt this one; it's been discussed in the literature but
I don't want to mangle the defense - anyone want it?  Of course, we may well
obsolete the ground telescopes by then anyway!

>If all astronomers become shoe salesmen or zoologists then who will be
>watching when the Klingons come?

obsolete AI programs, most likely (yes you, rich & dick!)
(see, I DO have a sense of humor!)

a. wieners (art) ihnp4!hou2h!ajw HO1B612 201/834-1142