Elevator to space by 2050?

Japanese construction company Obayashi Corporation wants to build an elevator to space by 2050. The plan calls for an earth station that is 22,000 miles away from a geostationary earth orbit station. The elevator is hypothesized to reach the space station in 9 days. Learn more at obayashi.co.jp

Transcript: Elevator to space. Can you imagine a nine day elevator ride to space? The Japanese construction company Obayashi Corporation can, and they’re working to making it a reality. Obayashi Corp. first introduced plans for a “space elevator” in 2012. They’re projecting the elevator to be ready by 2050. While they think the plan is realistic they also note that existing technology is “not yet sufficient to realize the concept.” The plan calls for an Earth station and – over 22,000 miles away – a geostationary Earth orbit station. It will have over 59,000 miles of carbon nanotube cable. A 1,312 foot diameter floating Earth Port and a 12,500 ton counter-weight. They estimate it will take over 20 years to construct the cable needed to connect the stations. Head to obayashi.co.jp to read more. Would you ride it?!

Autoblog Minute is a short-form video series covering the hottest news in automotive and transportation. You’ll find segments on everything from the latest vehicle concepts, to autonomous drones, to viral videos. This bite-size content will get you quickly caught up with what’s going on in the industry.