Lunar Space Elevator - Climbing Vehicles

Climbing Vehicles

One method of getting materials needed from the moon into orbit would be the use of robotic climbing vehicles. These vehicles would consist of two large wheels pressing against the ribbons of the elevator to provide enough friction for lift. The climbers could be set for horizontal or vertical ribbons.

The wheels would be driven by electric motors, which would obtain their power from solar energy or beamed energy. The power required to climb the ribbon would depend upon the lunar gravity field, which drops off the first few percent of the distance to L₁. The power that a climber would require to traverse the ribbon drops in proportion to proximity to the L₁ point. If a 540 kg climber traveled at a velocity of fifteen meters per second, by the time it was seven percent of the way to the L₁ point, the required power would drop to less than a hundred watts, versus 10 kilowatts at the surface.

One problem with using a solar powered vehicle is the lack of sunlight during some parts of the trip. For half of every month, the solar arrays on the lower part of the ribbon would be in the shade. One way to fix this problem would be to launch the vehicle at the base with a certain velocity then at the peak of the trajectory, attach it to the ribbon.