Tether
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Tethers versus Mass Drivers
There is an incorrect statement on exoplatz at http://www.exoplatz.org/index.php?title=Tether. It is written: "It (a tether) has an advantage over mass driver in that it can be used to soft land on the Moon as well as depart from the Moon." When one considers that a mass driver can be built in orbit around Luna, it is not hard to see how a mass driver can be used to soft land cargo on Luna. A mass driver can orbit as close to a Lunar mountain peak as a tether can. If it accelerates cargo to the rear at orbital velocity relative to itself as it goes past a mountain peak, that cargo is brought to a stop relative to Luna. Further, there is no physical law that would be broken to develop (at some future time) the ability for cargo in orbit to rendezvous with a carrier on Luna travling on a magnetically levitating track at orbital velocity and then slowing the cargo to a stop by regenerative braking (hopefully before reaching the end of the track). --Farred 01:31, 4 May 2008 (UTC)
