A lunar calculation with Almagest

BLUF A momentum-exchange tether in Earth orbit can deliver a payload to the Moon with [] times less fuel than a rocket. The savings multiply when there’s another tether around the Moon to send a payload back, if only for the fact that we do not have to send fuel (mass) for the return trip. I’m developing a simulation tool called Almagest to run tether calculations. Almagest is the foundational piece of software for this tether network, for everything from planning to web-based simulations, even for the embedded systems that will power the tethers themselves. ...

Oct 13, 2025 · Christopher Boette

How brutal is the rocket equation?

Δv Δv, or delta-v, is what keeps orbital engineers up at night. Simply, delta-v is the change in velocity that is necessary for anything to happen in space. One of the great promises of a momentum-exchange tether is that the system can transfer tremendous amounts of delta-v to a payload without paying exponential costs to do so.1 However, we can’t evaluate these claims in a vacuum (ha). To really get a sense of the unreasonable effectiveness of tethers, let’s first look at the rocket equation more deeply. ...

Oct 10, 2025 · Christopher Boette

How to save $327.6 million using Rust

It was 1999. In my memory, I’m in Mr. Wilson’s chemistry class when I hear about the cause of the crash, but I’m not sure about that. What I am sure about, though, is the feeling: overwhelm at the sheer magnitude of the blunder. $327.6 million spacecraft was lost in seconds. Three years of development. Ten months traveling through space. All because two teams used different units. Could Rust have prevented this disaster? ...

Sep 9, 2025 · Christopher Boette