Would you live in a building suspended from an asteroid? Every so often, a story does the rounds on the internet about an upside down skyscraper in New York that would hang from an asteroid. Yes, a tower full of apartments suspended in mid-air, attached to a giant space rock floating 31,000 miles up. Presumably everything inside would be the right way up because, you know, gravity.
Commenting on their design most recently, architects at Clouds AO said: ‘Analemma Tower is a proposal for the world’s tallest building ever. Harnessing the power of planetary design thinking, it taps into the desire for extreme height, seclusion and constant mobility. ‘If the recent boom in residential towers proves that sales price per square foot rises with floor elevation, then Analemma Tower will command record prices, justifying its high cost of construction.’ ‘High cost’ may be a bit of an understatement, but we’ll come back to that later.
Putting aside the impracticalities of living in floating skyscraper only accessible by drone, could the incredible feat of capturing an asteroid and hauling it into Earth’s orbit ever really be done? Well believe it or not, the idea is ‘not completely impossible’, according to Royal Observatory Greenwich astronomer Dr Greg Brown. ‘As ridiculous as it sounds, this is far from the first time that similar projects have been suggested,’ he says. ‘Their concept is similar to the famous “Space Elevator”, the concept for a literal elevator from the ground to space, thereby making space travel considerably simpler… if you could just somehow build the thing in the first place. ‘It would not be completely impossible to capture an asteroid. Some of the moons in the solar system are likely just that, indicating that nature can do it already.’
In a groundbreaking development, humans have demonstrated their ability to alter an asteroid’s orbit, albeit on a small scale, through Nasa’s Double Asteroid Redirection Test (Dart). However, the challenge of capturing an asteroid moving at speeds of up to 55,000 mph presents significant technical and financial obstacles. Dr Brown explains that moving an asteroid into Earth’s orbit would require vast investment and precision beyond our current capabilities. Despite this, the designers of the skyscraper plan have taken into account the practicality of a geostationary orbit, envisioning the structure to traverse the world in a figure of eight pattern.
The concept of a skyscraper hanging from a captured asteroid, while intriguing, faces a major hurdle: the absence of a material capable of withstanding the immense strain associated with such a construction. Dr Brown asserts that no material produced by humankind can handle the weight, making the idea currently unfeasible. Even the cabling involved would be unable to support the weight of the skyscraper, let alone that of a free-hanging structure. This limitation applies not only to the proposed skyscraper but also to the colossal creatures depicted in recent films like King Kong and Godzilla.
Despite these challenges, Dr Brown highlights other potential opportunities for utilizing asteroids. One such possibility is asteroid mining, where these celestial bodies, remnants of the solar system’s formation, offer a rich source of materials that are rare or deeply buried on Earth. However, the ethical implications and controversies surrounding such projects must be carefully considered. Nevertheless, the idea of asteroid mining is expected to gain traction in the coming decades as individuals explore the possibilities of intergalactic travel and resource extraction.
Asteroid Bennu, a potential threat to Earth, could collide with our planet in the next 150 years, according to experts. The asteroid, which measures 500m-wide and weighs a staggering 78 billion kg, has caught the attention of NASA. The space agency recently embarked on a mission called OSIRIS-REx, during which they visited Bennu and collected samples. However, the situation is far from resolved, as there is a 1 in 2,700 chance that the asteroid will collide with Earth on September 24, 2182. While the exact time of impact is yet to be determined, this potential catastrophe is a cause for concern.
Scientists have been exploring the possibility of using asteroids as a means of travel. Although it may not be practical to use them as actual ships, experts suggest that asteroids could be utilized for their raw materials. By latching a ship onto an asteroid, it could serve as a source of spare parts during space travel. While this concept is intriguing, the idea of relying on asteroids for transportation remains uncertain. Human space exploration has been successful thus far without the need for a rocky companion to guide the way. However, recent discoveries of interstellar asteroids, such as Oumuamua, have sparked new discussions about the potential of hitching a ride on these celestial bodies to explore the wider galaxy.
While the possibility of interstellar travel remains uncertain, the immediate concern lies with asteroid Bennu. With its potential to collide with Earth, the threat it poses cannot be ignored. NASA’s mission to study and collect samples from Bennu is a crucial step in understanding and potentially mitigating this threat. However, the clock is ticking, and time is of the essence. The next 150 years will be crucial in determining the fate of our planet and whether we can successfully navigate this potential collision. As we await more information and developments, the world holds its breath in anticipation of what the future holds.
