By 
June 17th, 2025
Image credit: Etheria Space
There is an uplifting announcement regarding the future of space elevators – a groundbreaking concept that could reshape the future of space exploration.
The dream is to put in place a highway to the stars, a continuous bridge connecting Earth to space, one that offers a more reliable, cost-effective, and eco-friendly alternative to traditional rockets.
A first-ever global space elevator challenge is being kicked off at the National Space Society’s International Space Development Conference in Orlando, Florida June 19-22 at the Rosen Centre Hotel.
Strategic competitions
Designed for university level students and space enthusiasts, a World Space Elevator Competition (WSPEC) will feature multiple strategic competitions designed to advance critical technologies needed to construct an elevator to space – the first ever to take place on a global level.
Image credit: Scientific Workgroup for Rocketry and Spaceflight (WARR) Space Elevator Challenge of Germany.
What’s being staged are live demonstrations of winning robotic climbers from past regional competitions, including the world’s fastest robotic climber that set a record climbing a 1,200 meter ribbon-shaped tether at more than 100 kilometers per hour.
WSPEC is a partnership of Etheria Space, who is driving the initiative, the Japan Space Elevator Association and the Scientific Workgroup for Rocketry and Spaceflight (WARR) Space Elevator Challenge of Germany. The U.S.-based International Space Elevator Consortium (ISEC) is driving the research behind a space elevator.
Image credit: Etheria Space
Critical technologies
WSPEC is an international non-profit organization that aims to advance the critical technologies needed to construct a space elevator through a series of strategic competitions designed to foster innovation and inspire the next generation of scientists and engineers.
At its heart, it’s about building the future, one audacious idea at a time.
The space elevator competition will spotlight innovations in:
- Advanced Materials: Teams will push the limits of material science, developing super-strong, ultra-light materials for the elevator tether.
- Robotics and Automation: showcase advancements in robotics systems designed to construct, maintain, and operate a space elevator.
- Power Beaming: Tame energy transmission needs with technologies that aim to wirelessly power “climbers” over vast distances.
- Artificial Intelligence: Teams will develop AI-powered systems for guidance, navigation, and control of space elevator operations.
Wanted: innovation
By fostering teamwork and innovation, the competition aims to inspire the next generation to make the ambitious dream of space elevators a reality.
Image credit: Etheria Space
The climber competition will be the first challenge of the space elevator games, pitting teams against each other.
Here’s what’s at stake:
Speed: How fast can their climber ascend the tether?
Efficiency: How little energy can they use to get to the top?
Payload Capacity: How much weight can their climber carry?
Innovation: Can they incorporate groundbreaking new technologies or designs?
Image credit: International Space Elevator Consortium
Science fiction turned to fact?
In his 22nd century-set 1970’s novel, The Fountains of Paradise, science fact/fiction writer, Arthur Clarke imagined an elevator connecting Earth with an orbiting satellite, eliminating the need for costly and environmentally destructive rockets.
The concept of the “space elevator” first appeared in 1895 when Russian scientist Konstantin Tsiolkovsky, inspired by the newly constructed Eifel Tower in Paris, thought of a tower that reached all the way into space.
In 1957 Yuri Artsutanov drew up a more feasible plan for building such a space tower. He proposed using a geostationary satellite as a base from which to build it. He suggested lowering a cable toward Earth while a counterweight was extended from Earth, keeping the cable’s center of gravity at the geosynchronous point.
Artsutanov published his ideas in the Sunday supplement Komsomolskaya Pravda (a national newspaper) in 1960.
Image credit: Gollancz/Orion Publishing Group
Clarke prediction
Bringing the concept to a popular readership, Clarke in his novel had engineers construct a space elevator on top of a mountain peak in the mythical island of Taprobane. The builders use advanced materials such as the carbon nanofibers.
“I’m often asked when I think the space elevator will be built,” Clarke once said during an interview. “My answer is about 10 years, when everyone stops laughing.”
For more information, go to:
https://isdc.nss.org/isdc_tracks/space-elevators-25/
Posted in Space News
