Space elevator

High school (ages 12+)
Space & Astronomy

Name:

Date:

Step 1 · Read the article

Open the article and read it at the level above. Then answer the questions below in your own words.

https://smallwhale.org/articles/space-elevator

Write what each word means, using the article.

Do not copy the article. Write two things you learned, the way you would explain them to a friend.

Answers below are taken from the article’s stored facts, so they match what the student read.

1. What is a space elevator?A space elevator is a very long cable that stretches from the Earth into space, letting things climb up instead of using rockets.
2. Why do we need a counterweight on a space elevator?The counterweight, such as a captured asteroid or a special mass, balances the cable so it stays straight and under tension.

Tensile Strength: The maximum stress a material can withstand while being stretched or pulled before breaking.
Centrifugal Pseudo-force: An inertial force experienced in a rotating frame of reference, appearing to push objects outward.
Geostationary Orbit: An orbit at an altitude where a satellite's orbital period matches Earth's rotation, appearing stationary from the ground.
Counterweight: A mass located at the outer end of the tether, beyond geostationary orbit, to maintain tension.