Perhaps launch from a pre-contaminated site.. say bikini atol ?
>
> In a message dated 6/21/00 10:57:22 AM Pacific Daylight Time,
> hibbert@netcom.com writes: << d.broderick@english.unimelb.edu.au said: >
One
> of the few Poul Anderson novels I haven't read is ORION SHALL RISE >
(1973),
> one of his Maurai series. I wouldn't be surprised if...
> Yep, that's what the book's about. It was nominated for the LFS Hall of
> Fame award a few years ago, which is when I read it. Pretty good, too.
In
> this book, the northwestern section of the US has evolved from its
current
> reputation as eco-freaks to anti-government isolationists. When the
> government starts to get uppity again and talks of reining them in, they
> hatch their plan to leave. Chris --- Chris Hibbert
>
> I understand there has been some concern over the radio activity involved
in
> launching the Orion space ship design from the surface of the Earth.
However
> has anyone done a study on that subject? Have the Engineers, as they so
> often do, found a way to avoid radio activity in a launch from the
surface?
> Ron H.
While there have been many designs for 'clean' atomic bombs, they are only
clean
in relation to normal bombs, as demonstrated in Project Plowshare, the
'Bombs
for Peace' program, where the AEC tried to develop interest in using nukes
for
large scale excavation and mining projects...
Considering the amount of atmospheric testing already done to date, with
little
long term ill effects outside of a few small areas, and considering the
amount
of mass an Orion can put into orbit (measured in hundreds and thousands of
tons,
not in pounds or kg.) I wouldn't mind one or a dozen launches specifically
to
bootstrap us into a decent industrial and exploratory capability in space.
Heck,
you could launch a full Mars Base mission off of one Orion alone, get
terraforming started early... MARS NEEDS WOMEN!
Mike Lorrey
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