Launch Sites: Highway, A Basement With Soil & Research Areas
This site was part of an unlimited design.
Most of the things that follow after are adjustments down to scale and availability. If anything is to happen in space. You would have to understand why all the things were being done in the basement. This was to be the site of the launch. (See the web page the house for the better drawings and idea of what I was doing.)
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Launch Site: Construction Area, Soil & Plants Research Areas
This is a diagram or picture of what the construction and launch areas in the sub-basement would have looked like. Since this is a plane and not a rocket this is a runway not a silo. A silo would be easier to hide than a runway but this is a plane. The buildings floors walls and roof prestressed concrete this allow the house to form a bridge over the work area. The reason this feature would be asked for was earthquake protection. The whole building would move as a unit or part could be unsupported by shifting and the building would hold together*. The area in the upper right is the first basement. The lower area was to be a partial sub-basement* by plan this will change. The far left of the picture going up passed the first basement the is the air exchange and air exhaust for the house. The darkest gray with what appears as two black vertical lines is the elevator from the driveway to both basements. The construction area was to be on the platform on the left. While the construction was going on the other areas would be put to use. The wall was to be cut where the browns starts and the first of the clay would be removed***. The total inside length was to be about 220 feet. The plane's length of 70 feet would leave 150 feet of runway for the catapult in this launch site for the plane. The outside wall would not come down till the day of launch. The exhaust from the plane and the steam from the catapult would leave through air exchange and the elevator shaft. This would allow for startup and warmup to full power without filling up the runway area with smoke. These are not rocket engines but there will be a lot of smoke.
The area that is pictured in brown, was to be used for experiments in making soils and growing plants, trees, etc, in that soil. With a measured amount of light to tell what conditions I could get by with. This was an experiment that would take time. Growing the plants to be ground up to make more soil. Yes, that is the rail that serves for launching the plane going right down the middle that is the only possible way to get the plane out of this sight. The research area on gardening was to the general ideas of kinds of soils needed and research in to the amount of light for growth. After the launch this research would have been used to started the growth of plants. With several plants being taken ready to produce. There was a fresh water 'sea weed'** that I used to swim under come out of the water carrying 30 pounds more of it from just what I could grab. This part was done from what just what I knew or had seen.
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This would have been a sight
There was a site I looked at this site for a home that would have provided an excellent place to work on the plane. The launching would have used Interstate Highway 80 as a runway which was next to the property. This side road was used as a bypass for the tunnel that was there. At that time I would have just had to move the portable concrete road islands before launch. The land was for sale a that time for $10,000. It is just east of Idaho Springs Colorado.
There was a source of "free" electrical power available for the house and construction of the plane. There was a stream that ran under an old highway bridge. The current had shifted over time so that it was striking the North embankment of the bridge. This caused the current to shoot down steam as it came out from the bridge. The speed was somewhere around 25 feet per second. The use of a small paddleboat docked at the end of the bridge to tap the power in the current would have provided more than enough power. (The sides should extend down in this case on both sides of the wheel like fins. There should be at least 2 blades in the water at any one time. A size was 6 feet wide with a radius of 3 feet, with the blades 1 foot in the water. Figure 50% efficiency and water weights 62.4 pounds per cubic foot. Count only one paddle and 33000 foot pound of torque per minute equals one horse power and one horsepower equals 746 watts)
The old roadway had a siding that would have been good site for mini storages. It's legal to build 216 square foot buildings without permit and there is no height restriction. There was room for about 100 feet of them pushed together. The one closest to the bridge would have been my shop to start. A sign painted on the building could be seen from the Interstate Highway. At that time of launch I would have just had to moved the portable concrete road islands next to Interstate Highway 80 and I could be on my runway. I had planned on a party for that weekend rent a big tent to bring the wings fuselage etc out into and put together. Using a fake car counter on the highway, I would wait till their are no cars coming out of Idaho Springs. Pull the plane out on to the 'runway' for launch. The takeoff speed for that plane was 180 miles per hour. Hold the 'stick' down till 185 then pull back the 'stick'. Launch! That is flying a plane that has never been flown by a pilot that has never flown. I had the money to buy the property but not to do the construction and other things came up so that this project had to be scrapped. There was a chance that the property could be condemned for state use after I started. Can you image clearing of the storages.
I was looking at land in Fairplay Colorado. This launch site was funny I was looking at a map of lots and asked about a funny area on the map. The lots were all 29 acres usually square or close to it. This one he said was about 100 yards wide and 1400 yards long. It was all dirt and weeds. Power would have been a problem and everything would have to be brought to the site. I new that I could make a plan for this one. It was just to far from work.
These area 3 launch sites of more than 6 launch sites that I worked on. Spend 6 months in my spare time on the first the last on about 2 months working out the details. The more you do the more you know whether it is launch sites or planes or plane control.
2 sites were within 80 miles of SAC and 2 sites were within 120 miles of NORAD. 140 miles from Peterson Air Force Darn it is the wrong Petersen. None of the runways would have had me going in there direction. The takeoff would be like a plane not a rocket so that would not tip them off till I was well up in the air.
Bob L. Petersen
Bob Petersen
The between the cars***** and the kitchen, that was to be all stainless steel that I had planned on finishing it myself. That would supply the tools for building the plane****. The machines and tools would be on first basement floor with the cars. The sub-basement could be all cover with different sections or parts. The main part of the frame and fuselage so that they could be mount on the catapult. Then the other parts could be added as they were completed.
* This was first written about last year the plan comes from 1974. I said it could be done so I worked out this design. This was to be constructed in Northern California. This is way to involved for a terrorist act. I said it could be done this is how. The amount of knowledge I have that is not germane to spaceflight or life in space is limited. Knowledge is limited to what will not cause trouble either by knowing doing or writing. I very interested in the fact that the Iraq could not make a mortar. It sounds like their engineers did not really want to. That is as far as I will go with that question.
**The years were 1966-1970 just off North fork of Loup River. This was in sand. Mostly watched but backed the bushings and dressed the belt.
***At first removed by bobcat. This would be stored till the pump could be brought in. The original and the brought up the pump would be mixed with more water and pumped out to the ocean or the lake at night, more going out when it rains. I have watched and operated 8-inch centrifugal pump with 53 horsepower diesel do dredging**. This operation would require an electric motor though. I was going to make a lake outside while the building was being built.
****I grew up next to a vocational technical school. At one time could have probably given my own tour when they had open house. On the ASVAB I identified all the tools correctly. I have welded, operated a turret lathe, been a automechanic and did repairs on pinballs and some video.
*****I have always found it very good to work on projects that are not stressing because of the involvement of other people. One of the reasons is that a person can start to enjoy stressing other people. Then what happens is what is being worked on gets lost in the mess that follows. This goes for thought and thinking as well as get your hands dirty projects.
Bob L. Petersen
The basement, the house, and the library (a third of the house was to be library with a private dome on top to study. This was first posted before 7/15/2002. I planned to take the books in digitized formate. There is an old girl friend who might remember the upstairs to this house and generally about the basement. The glass domed bedroom though and her being married, may cause trouble. The one before only got a dream of a house this got a plan.
