Space Elevator Architecture and Roadmaps

The International Space Elevator Consortium has conducted a year-long study addressing the issues associated with how to start the development of space elevators. This report is the result. The process for developing an architecture for a new system of systems has many steps. Each step leads to a technological roadmap leading to a mature engineering structure. Five segment roadmaps are developed: Tether Climber, Tether, Marine Node, Apex Anchor and Headquarters Primary Operations Center. The initial set of challenges for each segment is established. These will fuel a series of demonstrations pushing the development team to Culminating Demo's that resolves all those challenges. Then, Implementation Plans will be written and executed resulting in an Initial Operational Capability (IOC). This study is an excellent step in the ongoing analysis of the technological feasibility of space elevators.