SANTA FE, N.M., Sept. 17, 2003 — No matter how you view it, a
space elevator is a stretch ... not only of vision, but also of
far-out materials and cutting-edge technology. Putting in place
a space elevator is complicated: Extend a super-strong ribbon
from an Earth-situated platform at the equator out beyond
geosynchronous orbit. Once in position, electric lifts clamped
to the ribbon would truck spacecraft, science gear, as well as
passenger-carrying modules into space. But the quest for a
revolutionary route to space is getting very real. So real, in
truth, that the specter of a terrorist attack on such a stellar
skyscraper can’t be discounted. Nor can a host of thorny
national and international legal and policy qualms be set aside
for too long. Those were among numerous issues addressed during
the 2nd Annual International Conference on the Space Elevator,
held here September 12-15. The event was co-sponsored by the Los
Alamos National Laboratory of Los Alamos, New Mexico and the
Institute for Scientific Res