Is it possible to construct an elevator from the ground to space

Question

Is it possible to construct an elevator from the ground to space

Answer 1

Yes.  Youtube space elevator.

Answer 2

Maybe eventually with the right materials.

Answer 3

Yes it is possible. I agree with everything Billruss (answer above) has said in his comprehensive answer.

Recent breakthroughs in nanotechnology like being able to replicate the strength of a spiders web material using synthetic materials might bring this possibility closer. New materials like this are vital for the future of space research, for technological reasons.

Of course there are more than a few details to iron out, but from an

applied scientific viewpoint it can be done.

Answer 4

Not with currently available materials.

Arthur C. Clark wrote some interesting fiction on the subject,

but his 'cables' were the problem.

He also completely ignored the electric discharges that the system would have to deal with.

Answer 5

yes it is actually, and it will be the way to transport large items into space.

its not really an elevator per se, but it uses nano technology to create a rail system that literally builds it self into space and can hold a tremendous amount of payload.

Answer 6

Yes it is possible. It was first mentioned by Russian scientist Konstantin Tsiolkovsky in 1895.

Geostationary orbital tethers

This concept, also called an orbital space elevator, geostationary orbital tether, or a beanstalk, is a subset of the skyhook concept, and is what people normally think of when the phrase 'Space elevator' is used.

Construction would be a vast project: a tether would have to be built of a material that could endure tremendous stress while also being light-weight, cost-effective, and manufacturable in great quantities. Today's materials technology does not meet these requirements, although carbon nanotube technology shows great promise. A considerable number of other novel engineering problems would also have to be solved to make a space elevator practical. Not all problems regarding feasibility have yet been addressed.

In 1979, space elevators were introduced to a broader audience with the simultaneous publication of Arthur C. Clarke's novel, The Fountains of Paradise, in which engineers construct a space elevator on top of a mountain peak in the fictional island country of Taprobane (loosely based on Sri Lanka, albeit moved south to the equator), and Charles Sheffield's first novel, The Web Between the Worlds, also featuring the building of a space elevator. Three years later, in Robert A. Heinlein's 1982 novel Friday the principal character makes use of the "Nairobi Beanstalk" in the course of her travels.

Answer 7

Well! lets be objective:

Things to have in mind

1)The highest you go the winds are crazy to some point. Weather.

2)A structure so tall may be highly unstable. (Lever theory)

3)No matter what material you use, it would be extremely heavy.

you should have God as your land surveyor for that one.

4)To what point in space? Past the atmosphere?

5)More expensive than a spacecraft.

6)Some drunk pilot will go 911 on it.

7)Did I missed something?

Answer 8

no,but that would be cool if we did!