[DeTomaso] NPC: Tesla in space
Paul Timko
thedrol at pobox.com
Mon Feb 12 22:59:01 EST 2018
The Tesla is orbiting the sun every 1.6 years. My Pantera is orbiting the
sun once every year! Which one is faster?
Paul #9270
On Mon, Feb 12, 2018 at 6:10 PM Jeff Detrich <jjdetrich at gmail.com> wrote:
> "Billions of years from now, when our Sun has
> A A turned into a red giant and engulfed the Earth in nuclear fire,
> the
> A A Pioneer, [2]Voyager, and [3]New Horizons probes will still be
> traveling
> A A through our galaxy like a quintet of robotic Odysseus's."
> I believe VGER will return us and will collect the Tesla on its way
> back to save us
> A from the Sun.
> Live long and prosper.
> Jeff
> 6559
>
> On Mon, Feb 12, 2018 at 1:13 PM, Larry-Ohio Time Corp
> <[1]Larry at ohiotimecorp.com> wrote:
>
> A A If the SpaceX [1]Falcon Heavy is the world's most powerful
> rocket, then
> A A the Tesla Roadster that it shot into interplanetary space holds
> the
> A A record for the fastest car in history. This cosmic convertible
> will
> A A orbit around the Sun once every 1.6 years, but how long will it
> A A continue to do so, and what will be its fate? Will it still
> look as
> A A pristine a billion years from now as it did in the videos
> beamed back
> A A to Earth? Probably not.
> A A At the moment, there are five US spacecraft speeding out of our
> Solar
> A A System, never to return. Billions of years from now, when our
> Sun has
> A A turned into a red giant and engulfed the Earth in nuclear fire,
> the
> A A Pioneer, [2]Voyager, and [3]New Horizons probes will still be
> traveling
> A A through our galaxy like a quintet of robotic Odysseus's.
> A A Even back in our system and revolving about our Earth are
> satellites
> A A that will still be around for many millions of years. For
> example, one
> A A Earth-orbiting satellite, [4]LAGEOS-1, is a passive laser
> reflector
> A A satellite that will not only remain circling our planet for 8.4
> million
> A A years, but will remain functional for most of that time.
> A A With a track record like that, it looks as if the Tesla
> Roadster that
> A A rocketed into space on February 6, 2018 will be cruising
> happily among
> A A the stars as a permanent monument to the early days of
> commercial deep
> A A space travel. It's a nice thought that the Starman mannequin
> driver and
> A A his cherry red ride will still be around long after the
> pyramids have
> A A crumbled to sand.
> A A Except that's not going to happen. In fact, the Starman and the
> A A Roadster are in for a very unpleasant time and may not be in
> very good
> A A shape after a few years. And their lifespan, while huge by
> human
> A A standards, may be rather limited.
> A A At the moment, the Falcon Heavy second stage and the Roadster
> attached
> A A to it are in an orbit that [5]Jonathan McDowell of the
> A A Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics has recalculated
> from Elon
> A A Musk's rather generous [6]rough estimate of a few hours after
> liftoff.
> A A According to McDowell, the second stage is a Hohmann transfer
> orbit,
> A A which is most economical orbit in terms of energy for going
> from one
> A A place to another.
> A A Where Musk estimated that the second stage was circling the Sun
> at a
> A A distance between 91 million mi (150 million km) and 240 million
> mi (390
> A A million km) with an inclination of 29-o to the ecliptic,
> McDowell
> A A calculates that its orbit is between 92 million mi (148 million
> km) and
> A A 158 million mi (255 million km) with an inclination of 1.1-o
> and a
> A A period of about 1.6 years. This puts its farthest distance from
> the sun
> A A just beyond the orbit of Mars.
> A A The popular idea is that the Roadster will orbit the Sun for
> hundreds
> A A of millions, if not billions of years, but that isn't the case.
> The
> A A second stage and Roadster are now essentially a [7]near-Earth
> A A object (NEO), much like the asteroids that space agencies keep
> an eye
> A A on just in case a large one is going to hit the Earth.
> A A One thing that marks NEOs is that they don't have very long
> careers.
> A A They're interplanetary jaywalkers with all the hazards that
> implies.
> A A Planets and asteroids in circular orbits stay out of each
> other's way
> A A and are relatively stable, but NEOs, and the Roadster, are in
> eccentric
> A A orbits that cross the orbits of the planets. This makes their
> A A trajectories very unstable.
> A A The second stage will cross the orbits of Earth and Mars and
> its
> A A trajectory will certainly be perturbed by Jupiter's
> gravitational
> A A field, so there is a small chance that it might strike Earth or
> Mars
> A A many thousands of years from now, though it's so small that it
> will
> A A burn up in the atmosphere. Another possibility is that it might
> get
> A A flung out past Jupiter or inward past Venus. It might even be
> propelled
> A A into the Sun, as happens to many near-Earth asteroids after a
> few tens
> A A of millions of years. The orbital mechanics are very complex,
> so it's
> A A difficult to predict, but the upshot is that the Roadster won't
> be
> A A roaming the Solar System for as long as its neighbors.
> A A Another problem is that with the Roadster so close to the plane
> of the
> A A ecliptic, it's in danger of being struck by cosmic debris.
> There is a
> A A very small chance that it might be hit by a large object like
> an
> A A asteroid, but the greater threat is from micrometeoroids, which
> over
> A A the millennia will hit the car time and again. Each of these
> will cause
> A A small and not-so-small amounts of damage, until it could one
> day look
> A A like it's been shot at by a cannon filled with sand and gravel.
> A A But the much greater problem is that the Roadster isn't a
> purpose-built
> A A spacecraft. It's a production electric car, which means it's as
> A A suitable for surviving the environment of space as a chocolate
> Easter
> A A bunny in a convection oven.
> A A [8]The Roadster passing the terminator
> A A We're used to stories of interplanetary spacecraft functioning
> long
> A A past the predicted end of their service life. Mars rovers
> expected to
> A A operate for 90 days are still rolling after many years, and the
> Voyager
> A A probes are still working 40 years after their launch. Even the
> defunct
> A A machines, like the [9]Kepler Space Telescope, can be expected
> to be
> A A around for many millions of years in a relatively intact
> condition. Why
> A A not the roadster, then?
> A A The answer is very simple. Space engineers have spent decades
> studying
> A A how to build spacecraft and especially which materials to build
> them
> A A out of. They know which ones can withstand the extreme heat and
> cold of
> A A space, the hard ultraviolet (UV) radiation, as well as the
> X-rays,
> A A gamma rays, and cosmic rays that are constantly bombarding our
> A A technology outside the protection of Earth's atmosphere and Van
> Allen
> A A belts.
> A A The Tesla Roadster, on the other hand, was designed to drive on
> A A Earthside roads, not galavant between the Earth and Mars. It
> was made
> A A to be light and fast, and have good road handling. That may be
> fine on
> A A the twisting roads of Italy, but the engineering that went into
> the
> A A Roadster is now a positive detriment in space.
> A A The biggest problem is that the Roadster, and Starman, and made
> up
> A A largely of rubber, plastics, and carbon composites, which
> consist of
> A A long chain organic molecules that include epoxy resins,
> polypropylene,
> A A polystyrene, polyvinyl chloride, nylon, and many others. These
> make up
> A A the carbon composite car body, the fabrics in the interior, the
> A A cushions in the seats, electrical insulation, and a myriad of
> A A fasteners, fairings, and adhesive compounds. Starman and his
> suit are
> A A made almost entirely out of organic polymers and even the
> safety glass
> A A in the car's windscreen is a plastic laminate.
> A A IFRAME:
> A A [10][2]https://tpc.googlesyndication.com/safeframe/1-0-15/html/
> container.h
> A A tml
> A A All of these, at this very moment, are being subjected to
> dangerously
> A A high temperature variations as the sunlit areas heat to 260-o F
> (127-o
> A A C) and the shaded areas plunging to -280-o F (-173-o C).
> Fortunately,
> A A the second stage is slowly rotating, so the car is being evenly
> baked
> A A like a rotisserie chicken, but as the vehicle orbits toward and
> away
> A A from the Sun, it will produce strong thermal stresses that will
> produce
> A A all manner of material fatigue. Also, the rotation means that
> anything
> A A that comes loose can fly away.
> A A But the worst is all that radiation hitting those long polymer
> chain
> A A molecules. As the rays strike, they will break down the
> molecules bit
> A A by bit, converting them into free radicals. The same goes for
> the
> A A pigments used to give the Roadster its red color. Eventually,
> the car
> A A will become bleached, then everything made of polymers will
> A A disintegrate and crumble into dust.
> A A It's all happened before and it doesn't take very long. If you
> look at
> A A pictures of the old Apollo moon missions of the late 1960s and
> early
> A A 70s, you'll be familiar with the images of spacesuited American
> A A astronauts saluting the [11]flag and the Lunar Module wrapped
> in gold
> A A Mylar foil to keep it cool under the harsh lunar sun. If you
> were to go
> A A back to those landing sites, you'd find the flag poles empty
> and the
> A A descent stage of the module largely unclad because half a
> century of
> A A radiation has done its work.
> A A So what will the Tesla Roadster look like in a couple of
> centuries? The
> A A most obvious thing will be that the carbon composite body will
> be gone
> A A as the epoxy resins have all broken down and the carbon fibers
> fallen
> A A apart. The rubber tires on the wheels won't be there either.
> A A Many other bits will have come loose as the adhesives turned
> brittle
> A A and ceased to stick. Even the windscreen will have a yellowy
> opaque
> A A look, provided the laminate hasn't failed completely or a
> meteoroid
> A A hasn't slammed into it. In the cockpit, Starman is now reduced
> to a few
> A A metal joints. The seats are bare metal frames with the fabric
> covers
> A A now powder, and the foam rubber cushions long gone.
> A A Other materials in the car will also suffer over time. Any
> lubricants
> A A will have frozen or boiled away. Those that remain will degrade
> like
> A A the plastics, turning into a brittle mess. If any graphite was
> used for
> A A lubricant, the water molecules that make graphite powder
> slippery will
> A A evaporate and the carbon molecules left behind will now have
> the
> A A property of jeweler's polish.
> A A It's very likely that the 6,831 lithium-ion cells that powered
> the
> A A Roadster will have been removed before leaving Earth. The FAA
> probably
> A A wouldn't have been too happy about 700 lb (317 kg) of
> fire-prone
> A A batteries sitting atop the Falcon Heavy, turning into a very
> large
> A A bomb. However, there was a battery aboard to run the cameras
> that
> A A beamed back video to Earth. That battery may, depending on its
> design,
> A A start to generate gas and may one day explode. Meanwhile, the
> A A electronics used to transmit video will very soon be fried by
> the
> A A radiation as the delicate micro circuits are destroyed bit by
> bit.
> A A Even the metals in the car will be affected. The roadster uses
> advanced
> A A alloys - some of which might start to outgas. Radiation will
> eventually
> A A affect the crystalline structure of the alloys and may give
> them a
> A A patina, such as is sometimes found on metallic objects in very
> dry
> A A deserts. Over millions of years, some may become brittle. Some
> may
> A A develop something similar to tin pest, where tin alters its
> structure
> A A at very low temperatures and appears to rot.
> A A In the end, if some distant future expedition does retrieve the
> A A Roadster, it will be in a sorry state - a battered, bare metal
> frame
> A A with a few pockets of organic chemical dust. But maybe that
> won't be so
> A A bad. Maybe it will give it the right air of romance, like the
> Parthenon
> A A or Stonehenge. Or maybe it will be regarded as a challenge by
> the
> A A finders, who may embark on the greatest car restoration project
> in
> A A history.
> A A Let's hope they get the paint job right.
> A A Larry (too used for me) - Cleveland
> References
> A A Visible links
> A A 1. [3]https://newatlas.com/falcon-heavy-launch/53258/
> A A 2. [4]https://newatlas.com/voyager-40th-anniversary-
> retrospective-gallery/50744/
> A A 3. [5]https://newatlas.com/new-horizons-pluto-flyby-nasa/34777/
> A A 4. [6]https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/LAGEOS
> A A 5. [7]https://mobile.twitter.com/planet4589/status/
> 961394843648954368
> A A 6. [8]https://newatlas.com/spacex-
> images-starman-asteroid/53301/
> A A 7. [9]http://www.science20.com/robert_walker/will_elon_musks_
> cherry_red_tesla_roadster_orbit_for_a_billion_years_
> falcon_heavy_test_launch-230358
> A A 8. javascript:void(0)
> A A 9. [10]https://newatlas.com/kepler-
> recovery-emergency-mode/42756/
> A 10. [11]https://tpc.googlesyndication.com/safeframe/1-0-15/html/
> container.html
> A 11. [12]https://newatlas.com/apollo-moon-flags-standing/23523/
> A A Hidden links:
> A 13. javascript:void(0)
> A 14. javascript:void(0)
> A 15. javascript:void(0)
> A 16. javascript:void(0)
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> References
>
> 1. mailto:Larry at ohiotimecorp.com
> 2. https://tpc.googlesyndication.com/safeframe/1-0-15/html/container.h
> 3. https://newatlas.com/falcon-heavy-launch/53258/
> 4.
> https://newatlas.com/voyager-40th-anniversary-retrospective-gallery/50744/
> 5. https://newatlas.com/new-horizons-pluto-flyby-nasa/34777/
> 6. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/LAGEOS
> 7. https://mobile.twitter.com/planet4589/status/961394843648954368
> 8. https://newatlas.com/spacex-images-starman-asteroid/53301/
> 9.
> http://www.science20.com/robert_walker/will_elon_musks_cherry_red_tesla_roadster_orbit_for_a_billion_years_falcon_heavy_test_launch-230358
> 10. https://newatlas.com/kepler-recovery-emergency-mode/42756/
> 11.
> https://tpc.googlesyndication.com/safeframe/1-0-15/html/container.html
> 12. https://newatlas.com/apollo-moon-flags-standing/23523/
> 13. mailto:DeTomaso at server.detomasolist.com
> 14. http://server.detomasolist.com/mailman/listinfo/detomaso
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-------------- next part --------------
The Tesla is orbiting the sun every 1.6 years.A My Pantera is orbiting
the sun once every year!A Which one is faster?
Paul #9270
On Mon, Feb 12, 2018 at 6:10 PM Jeff Detrich <[1]jjdetrich at gmail.com>
wrote:
A A "Billions of years from now, when our Sun has
A A AA A turned into a red giant and engulfed the Earth in nuclear
fire,
A A the
A A AA A Pioneer, [2]Voyager, and [3]New Horizons probes will
still be
A A traveling
A A AA A through our galaxy like a quintet of robotic Odysseus's."
A A I believe VGER will return us and will collect the Tesla on its
way
A A back to save us
A A A from the Sun.
A A Live long and prosper.
A A Jeff
A A 6559
A A On Mon, Feb 12, 2018 at 1:13 PM, Larry-Ohio Time Corp
A A <[1][2]Larry at ohiotimecorp.com> wrote:
A A A AA A If the SpaceX [1]Falcon Heavy is the world's most
powerful
A A A rocket, then
A A A AA A the Tesla Roadster that it shot into interplanetary
space holds
A A A the
A A A AA A record for the fastest car in history. This cosmic
convertible
A A A will
A A A AA A orbit around the Sun once every 1.6 years, but how
long will it
A A A AA A continue to do so, and what will be its fate? Will it
still
A A A look as
A A A AA A pristine a billion years from now as it did in the
videos
A A A beamed back
A A A AA A to Earth? Probably not.
A A A AA A At the moment, there are five US spacecraft speeding
out of our
A A A Solar
A A A AA A System, never to return. Billions of years from now,
when our
A A A Sun has
A A A AA A turned into a red giant and engulfed the Earth in
nuclear fire,
A A A the
A A A AA A Pioneer, [2]Voyager, and [3]New Horizons probes will
still be
A A A traveling
A A A AA A through our galaxy like a quintet of robotic
Odysseus's.
A A A AA A Even back in our system and revolving about our Earth
are
A A A satellites
A A A AA A that will still be around for many millions of years.
For
A A A example, one
A A A AA A Earth-orbiting satellite, [4]LAGEOS-1, is a passive
laser
A A A reflector
A A A AA A satellite that will not only remain circling our
planet for 8.4
A A A million
A A A AA A years, but will remain functional for most of that
time.
A A A AA A With a track record like that, it looks as if the
Tesla
A A A Roadster that
A A A AA A rocketed into space on February 6, 2018 will be
cruising
A A A happily among
A A A AA A the stars as a permanent monument to the early days of
A A A commercial deep
A A A AA A space travel. It's a nice thought that the Starman
mannequin
A A A driver and
A A A AA A his cherry red ride will still be around long after
the
A A A pyramids have
A A A AA A crumbled to sand.
A A A AA A Except that's not going to happen. In fact, the
Starman and the
A A A AA A Roadster are in for a very unpleasant time and may not
be in
A A A very good
A A A AA A shape after a few years. And their lifespan, while
huge by
A A A human
A A A AA A standards, may be rather limited.
A A A AA A At the moment, the Falcon Heavy second stage and the
Roadster
A A A attached
A A A AA A to it are in an orbit that [5]Jonathan McDowell of the
A A A AA A Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics has
recalculated
A A A from Elon
A A A AA A Musk's rather generous [6]rough estimate of a few
hours after
A A A liftoff.
A A A AA A According to McDowell, the second stage is a Hohmann
transfer
A A A orbit,
A A A AA A which is most economical orbit in terms of energy for
going
A A A from one
A A A AA A place to another.
A A A AA A Where Musk estimated that the second stage was
circling the Sun
A A A at a
A A A AA A distance between 91 million mi (150 million km) and
240 million
A A A mi (390
A A A AA A million km) with an inclination of 29-o to the
ecliptic,
A A A McDowell
A A A AA A calculates that its orbit is between 92 million mi
(148 million
A A A km) and
A A A AA A 158 million mi (255 million km) with an inclination of
1.1-o
A A A and a
A A A AA A period of about 1.6 years. This puts its farthest
distance from
A A A the sun
A A A AA A just beyond the orbit of Mars.
A A A AA A The popular idea is that the Roadster will orbit the
Sun for
A A A hundreds
A A A AA A of millions, if not billions of years, but that isn't
the case.
A A A The
A A A AA A second stage and Roadster are now essentially a
[7]near-Earth
A A A AA A object (NEO), much like the asteroids that space
agencies keep
A A A an eye
A A A AA A on just in case a large one is going to hit the Earth.
A A A AA A One thing that marks NEOs is that they don't have very
long
A A A careers.
A A A AA A They're interplanetary jaywalkers with all the hazards
that
A A A implies.
A A A AA A Planets and asteroids in circular orbits stay out of
each
A A A other's way
A A A AA A and are relatively stable, but NEOs, and the Roadster,
are in
A A A eccentric
A A A AA A orbits that cross the orbits of the planets. This
makes their
A A A AA A trajectories very unstable.
A A A AA A The second stage will cross the orbits of Earth and
Mars and
A A A its
A A A AA A trajectory will certainly be perturbed by Jupiter's
A A A gravitational
A A A AA A field, so there is a small chance that it might strike
Earth or
A A A Mars
A A A AA A many thousands of years from now, though it's so small
that it
A A A will
A A A AA A burn up in the atmosphere. Another possibility is that
it might
A A A get
A A A AA A flung out past Jupiter or inward past Venus. It might
even be
A A A propelled
A A A AA A into the Sun, as happens to many near-Earth asteroids
after a
A A A few tens
A A A AA A of millions of years. The orbital mechanics are very
complex,
A A A so it's
A A A AA A difficult to predict, but the upshot is that the
Roadster won't
A A A be
A A A AA A roaming the Solar System for as long as its neighbors.
A A A AA A Another problem is that with the Roadster so close to
the plane
A A A of the
A A A AA A ecliptic, it's in danger of being struck by cosmic
debris.
A A A There is a
A A A AA A very small chance that it might be hit by a large
object like
A A A an
A A A AA A asteroid, but the greater threat is from
micrometeoroids, which
A A A over
A A A AA A the millennia will hit the car time and again. Each of
these
A A A will cause
A A A AA A small and not-so-small amounts of damage, until it
could one
A A A day look
A A A AA A like it's been shot at by a cannon filled with sand
and gravel.
A A A AA A But the much greater problem is that the Roadster
isn't a
A A A purpose-built
A A A AA A spacecraft. It's a production electric car, which
means it's as
A A A AA A suitable for surviving the environment of space as a
chocolate
A A A Easter
A A A AA A bunny in a convection oven.
A A A AA A [8]The Roadster passing the terminator
A A A AA A We're used to stories of interplanetary spacecraft
functioning
A A A long
A A A AA A past the predicted end of their service life. Mars
rovers
A A A expected to
A A A AA A operate for 90 days are still rolling after many
years, and the
A A A Voyager
A A A AA A probes are still working 40 years after their launch.
Even the
A A A defunct
A A A AA A machines, like the [9]Kepler Space Telescope, can be
expected
A A A to be
A A A AA A around for many millions of years in a relatively
intact
A A A condition. Why
A A A AA A not the roadster, then?
A A A AA A The answer is very simple. Space engineers have spent
decades
A A A studying
A A A AA A how to build spacecraft and especially which materials
to build
A A A them
A A A AA A out of. They know which ones can withstand the extreme
heat and
A A A cold of
A A A AA A space, the hard ultraviolet (UV) radiation, as well as
the
A A A X-rays,
A A A AA A gamma rays, and cosmic rays that are constantly
bombarding our
A A A AA A technology outside the protection of Earth's
atmosphere and Van
A A A Allen
A A A AA A belts.
A A A AA A The Tesla Roadster, on the other hand, was designed to
drive on
A A A AA A Earthside roads, not galavant between the Earth and
Mars. It
A A A was made
A A A AA A to be light and fast, and have good road handling.
That may be
A A A fine on
A A A AA A the twisting roads of Italy, but the engineering that
went into
A A A the
A A A AA A Roadster is now a positive detriment in space.
A A A AA A The biggest problem is that the Roadster, and Starman,
and made
A A A up
A A A AA A largely of rubber, plastics, and carbon composites,
which
A A A consist of
A A A AA A long chain organic molecules that include epoxy
resins,
A A A polypropylene,
A A A AA A polystyrene, polyvinyl chloride, nylon, and many
others. These
A A A make up
A A A AA A the carbon composite car body, the fabrics in the
interior, the
A A A AA A cushions in the seats, electrical insulation, and a
myriad of
A A A AA A fasteners, fairings, and adhesive compounds. Starman
and his
A A A suit are
A A A AA A made almost entirely out of organic polymers and even
the
A A A safety glass
A A A AA A in the car's windscreen is a plastic laminate.
A A A AA A IFRAME:
A A A AA A
[10][2][3]https://tpc.googlesyndication.com/safeframe/1-0-15/html/
A A A container.h
A A A AA A tml
A A A AA A All of these, at this very moment, are being subjected
to
A A A dangerously
A A A AA A high temperature variations as the sunlit areas heat
to 260-o F
A A A (127-o
A A A AA A C) and the shaded areas plunging to -280-o F (-173-o
C).
A A A Fortunately,
A A A AA A the second stage is slowly rotating, so the car is
being evenly
A A A baked
A A A AA A like a rotisserie chicken, but as the vehicle orbits
toward and
A A A away
A A A AA A from the Sun, it will produce strong thermal stresses
that will
A A A produce
A A A AA A all manner of material fatigue. Also, the rotation
means that
A A A anything
A A A AA A that comes loose can fly away.
A A A AA A But the worst is all that radiation hitting those long
polymer
A A A chain
A A A AA A molecules. As the rays strike, they will break down
the
A A A molecules bit
A A A AA A by bit, converting them into free radicals. The same
goes for
A A A the
A A A AA A pigments used to give the Roadster its red color.
Eventually,
A A A the car
A A A AA A will become bleached, then everything made of polymers
will
A A A AA A disintegrate and crumble into dust.
A A A AA A It's all happened before and it doesn't take very
long. If you
A A A look at
A A A AA A pictures of the old Apollo moon missions of the late
1960s and
A A A early
A A A AA A 70s, you'll be familiar with the images of spacesuited
American
A A A AA A astronauts saluting the [11]flag and the Lunar Module
wrapped
A A A in gold
A A A AA A Mylar foil to keep it cool under the harsh lunar sun.
If you
A A A were to go
A A A AA A back to those landing sites, you'd find the flag poles
empty
A A A and the
A A A AA A descent stage of the module largely unclad because
half a
A A A century of
A A A AA A radiation has done its work.
A A A AA A So what will the Tesla Roadster look like in a couple
of
A A A centuries? The
A A A AA A most obvious thing will be that the carbon composite
body will
A A A be gone
A A A AA A as the epoxy resins have all broken down and the
carbon fibers
A A A fallen
A A A AA A apart. The rubber tires on the wheels won't be there
either.
A A A AA A Many other bits will have come loose as the adhesives
turned
A A A brittle
A A A AA A and ceased to stick. Even the windscreen will have a
yellowy
A A A opaque
A A A AA A look, provided the laminate hasn't failed completely
or a
A A A meteoroid
A A A AA A hasn't slammed into it. In the cockpit, Starman is now
reduced
A A A to a few
A A A AA A metal joints. The seats are bare metal frames with the
fabric
A A A covers
A A A AA A now powder, and the foam rubber cushions long gone.
A A A AA A Other materials in the car will also suffer over time.
Any
A A A lubricants
A A A AA A will have frozen or boiled away. Those that remain
will degrade
A A A like
A A A AA A the plastics, turning into a brittle mess. If any
graphite was
A A A used for
A A A AA A lubricant, the water molecules that make graphite
powder
A A A slippery will
A A A AA A evaporate and the carbon molecules left behind will
now have
A A A the
A A A AA A property of jeweler's polish.
A A A AA A It's very likely that the 6,831 lithium-ion cells that
powered
A A A the
A A A AA A Roadster will have been removed before leaving Earth.
The FAA
A A A probably
A A A AA A wouldn't have been too happy about 700 lb (317 kg) of
A A A fire-prone
A A A AA A batteries sitting atop the Falcon Heavy, turning into
a very
A A A large
A A A AA A bomb. However, there was a battery aboard to run the
cameras
A A A that
A A A AA A beamed back video to Earth. That battery may,
depending on its
A A A design,
A A A AA A start to generate gas and may one day explode.
Meanwhile, the
A A A AA A electronics used to transmit video will very soon be
fried by
A A A the
A A A AA A radiation as the delicate micro circuits are destroyed
bit by
A A A bit.
A A A AA A Even the metals in the car will be affected. The
roadster uses
A A A advanced
A A A AA A alloys - some of which might start to outgas.
Radiation will
A A A eventually
A A A AA A affect the crystalline structure of the alloys and may
give
A A A them a
A A A AA A patina, such as is sometimes found on metallic objects
in very
A A A dry
A A A AA A deserts. Over millions of years, some may become
brittle. Some
A A A may
A A A AA A develop something similar to tin pest, where tin
alters its
A A A structure
A A A AA A at very low temperatures and appears to rot.
A A A AA A In the end, if some distant future expedition does
retrieve the
A A A AA A Roadster, it will be in a sorry state - a battered,
bare metal
A A A frame
A A A AA A with a few pockets of organic chemical dust. But maybe
that
A A A won't be so
A A A AA A bad. Maybe it will give it the right air of romance,
like the
A A A Parthenon
A A A AA A or Stonehenge. Or maybe it will be regarded as a
challenge by
A A A the
A A A AA A finders, who may embark on the greatest car
restoration project
A A A in
A A A AA A history.
A A A AA A Let's hope they get the paint job right.
A A A AA AA Larry (too used for me) - Cleveland
A A A References
A A A AA A Visible links
A A A AA A 1.
[3][4]https://newatlas.com/falcon-heavy-launch/53258/
A A A AA A 2.
[4][5]https://newatlas.com/voyager-40th-anniversary-
A A A retrospective-gallery/50744/
A A A AA A 3.
[5][6]https://newatlas.com/new-horizons-pluto-flyby-nasa/34777/
A A A AA A 4. [6][7]https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/LAGEOS
A A A AA A 5. [7][8]https://mobile.twitter.com/planet4589/status/
A A A 961394843648954368
A A A AA A 6. [8][9]https://newatlas.com/spacex-
A A A images-starman-asteroid/53301/
A A A AA A 7.
[9][10]http://www.science20.com/robert_walker/will_elon_musks_
A A A cherry_red_tesla_roadster_orbit_for_a_billion_years_
A A A falcon_heavy_test_launch-230358
A A A AA A 8. javascript:void(0)
A A A AA A 9. [10][11]https://newatlas.com/kepler-
A A A recovery-emergency-mode/42756/
A A A AA 10.
[11][12]https://tpc.googlesyndication.com/safeframe/1-0-15/html/
A A A container.html
A A A AA 11.
[12][13]https://newatlas.com/apollo-moon-flags-standing/23523/
A A A AA A Hidden links:
A A A AA 13. javascript:void(0)
A A A AA 14. javascript:void(0)
A A A AA 15. javascript:void(0)
A A A AA 16. javascript:void(0)
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A A A DeTomaso mailing list
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A A
A [14][15]http://server.detomasolist.com/mailman/listinfo/detomaso
A A A To manage your subscription (change email address,
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References
A A 1. mailto:[16]Larry at ohiotimecorp.com
A A 2.
[17]https://tpc.googlesyndication.com/safeframe/1-0-15/html/containe
r.h
A A 3. [18]https://newatlas.com/falcon-heavy-launch/53258/
A A 4.
[19]https://newatlas.com/voyager-40th-anniversary-retrospective-gall
ery/50744/
A A 5.
[20]https://newatlas.com/new-horizons-pluto-flyby-nasa/34777/
A A 6. [21]https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/LAGEOS
A A 7.
[22]https://mobile.twitter.com/planet4589/status/961394843648954368
A A 8.
[23]https://newatlas.com/spacex-images-starman-asteroid/53301/
A A 9.
[24]http://www.science20.com/robert_walker/will_elon_musks_cherry_re
d_tesla_roadster_orbit_for_a_billion_years_falcon_heavy_test_launch-
230358
A 10.
[25]https://newatlas.com/kepler-recovery-emergency-mode/42756/
A 11.
[26]https://tpc.googlesyndication.com/safeframe/1-0-15/html/containe
r.html
A 12. [27]https://newatlas.com/apollo-moon-flags-standing/23523/
A 13. mailto:[28]DeTomaso at server.detomasolist.com
A 14. [29]http://server.detomasolist.com/mailman/listinfo/detomaso
_______________________________________________
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References
1. mailto:jjdetrich at gmail.com
2. mailto:Larry at ohiotimecorp.com
3. https://tpc.googlesyndication.com/safeframe/1-0-15/html/
4. https://newatlas.com/falcon-heavy-launch/53258/
5. https://newatlas.com/voyager-40th-anniversary-
6. https://newatlas.com/new-horizons-pluto-flyby-nasa/34777/
7. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/LAGEOS
8. https://mobile.twitter.com/planet4589/status/
9. https://newatlas.com/spacex-
10. http://www.science20.com/robert_walker/will_elon_musks_
11. https://newatlas.com/kepler-
12. https://tpc.googlesyndication.com/safeframe/1-0-15/html/
13. https://newatlas.com/apollo-moon-flags-standing/23523/
14. mailto:DeTomaso at server.detomasolist.com
15. http://server.detomasolist.com/mailman/listinfo/detomaso
16. mailto:Larry at ohiotimecorp.com
17. https://tpc.googlesyndication.com/safeframe/1-0-15/html/container.h
18. https://newatlas.com/falcon-heavy-launch/53258/
19. https://newatlas.com/voyager-40th-anniversary-retrospective-gallery/50744/
20. https://newatlas.com/new-horizons-pluto-flyby-nasa/34777/
21. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/LAGEOS
22. https://mobile.twitter.com/planet4589/status/961394843648954368
23. https://newatlas.com/spacex-images-starman-asteroid/53301/
24. http://www.science20.com/robert_walker/will_elon_musks_cherry_red_tesla_roadster_orbit_for_a_billion_years_falcon_heavy_test_launch-230358
25. https://newatlas.com/kepler-recovery-emergency-mode/42756/
26. https://tpc.googlesyndication.com/safeframe/1-0-15/html/container.html
27. https://newatlas.com/apollo-moon-flags-standing/23523/
28. mailto:DeTomaso at server.detomasolist.com
29. http://server.detomasolist.com/mailman/listinfo/detomaso
30. mailto:DeTomaso at server.detomasolist.com
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