03-04-2020, 07:30 AM
A thread I started thinking about colonizing Mars.
Santa Claus machines envisioned computerized, robotic factories on the surface of the moon. Such machines would, using solar energy, mine the moon and create copies of themselves until they blanket large areas of the Moon. Then would switch to making stuff we want on earth. Since the moon has lower gravity than Earth, we could us magnetic launchers to send manufactured goods to earth. Free stuff! Hence the name Santa Claus machines. Something like this would be needed for large scale long term settlements on the Moon, or Mars.
Needless to say, we are far, from being able to create such machines. And I don't know of any real attempts to create any such machines. Not from NASA, Elon Mush or anybody else. We don't seem to be able to create such machines here on Earth, to create say, large scale solar projects. Or large scale free wind turbines from some sort of automated factory. Free wind turbines.
Nor do we see any such projects from say, Russia or China.
Basically, any large scale and long term settlements off world in the future start with working Santa Claus machines.
A wrinkle on the concept was nanotechnology. Which was in theory, capable of creating anything. But has not even begin to be able to create anything useful. Much less capable or creating large macro sized devices, say a solar panel.
It is a nice concept but still far beyond our abilities.
Santa Claus machines envisioned computerized, robotic factories on the surface of the moon. Such machines would, using solar energy, mine the moon and create copies of themselves until they blanket large areas of the Moon. Then would switch to making stuff we want on earth. Since the moon has lower gravity than Earth, we could us magnetic launchers to send manufactured goods to earth. Free stuff! Hence the name Santa Claus machines. Something like this would be needed for large scale long term settlements on the Moon, or Mars.
Needless to say, we are far, from being able to create such machines. And I don't know of any real attempts to create any such machines. Not from NASA, Elon Mush or anybody else. We don't seem to be able to create such machines here on Earth, to create say, large scale solar projects. Or large scale free wind turbines from some sort of automated factory. Free wind turbines.
Nor do we see any such projects from say, Russia or China.
Basically, any large scale and long term settlements off world in the future start with working Santa Claus machines.
A wrinkle on the concept was nanotechnology. Which was in theory, capable of creating anything. But has not even begin to be able to create anything useful. Much less capable or creating large macro sized devices, say a solar panel.
It is a nice concept but still far beyond our abilities.