Yeah, my overall sense is that using falling mass to spin the tether back up is the most practical. But solar sails and ion drives might contribute too, these are just much slower which hurts launch cadence and costs.
The fact that you need a regular supply of falling mass from e.g. the moon is yet another reason why tethers need a mature space industry to become viable!
Yeah, my overall sense is that using falling mass to spin the tether back up is the most practical. But solar sails and ion drives might contribute too, these are just much slower which hurts launch cadence and costs.
The fact that you need a regular supply of falling mass from e.g. the moon is yet another reason why tethers need a mature space industry to become viable!