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Lately I've been wondering about 'mining' hydrogen, as well as other gases, from the atmosphere of a gas giant.
My vague idea would be some sort of nuclear-powered scramjet, that could skim the upper atmosphere and slowly collect gases. It would maintain a high enough altitude that reaching orbit from that altitude would not be too problematic.
I don't know how plausible that would be...
Is there a better concept than this? Balloons maybe? How would you launch from the upper atmosphere of a gas giant?
What would the ideal altitude for gas-harvesting be? What is the abundance of isotopes such as Deutarium and Helium 3 in the atmospheres of gas giants? Is there any data on this, or at least estimates/vague figures of some kind?
What other chemicals could be extrated from the atmospheres of gas giants?
Can collisions between spacecraft and ring particles be avoided when operating in close proximity to planets with such formations around them?
My vague idea would be some sort of nuclear-powered scramjet, that could skim the upper atmosphere and slowly collect gases. It would maintain a high enough altitude that reaching orbit from that altitude would not be too problematic.
I don't know how plausible that would be...
Is there a better concept than this? Balloons maybe? How would you launch from the upper atmosphere of a gas giant?
What would the ideal altitude for gas-harvesting be? What is the abundance of isotopes such as Deutarium and Helium 3 in the atmospheres of gas giants? Is there any data on this, or at least estimates/vague figures of some kind?
What other chemicals could be extrated from the atmospheres of gas giants?
Can collisions between spacecraft and ring particles be avoided when operating in close proximity to planets with such formations around them?