ROCKET CATCHER (Jan, 1953)
ROCKET CATCHER
IF and when space travel becomes a reality, there’ll be the problem of landing high-speed rocket ships. D. B. Driskill of San Francisco thinks he has the answer in his U. S. Patent 2,592,873. He would build a system of telescoping tubes butted against a mountainside or mounted on skis or a train platform. The rocket ship would be guided into the end of the outer tube by radar. This tube would slide into the second tube, braked by air pressure, and then into the main tube. When pressure between the tubes is released, passengers would leave through doors in their walls.
Patent here http://www.google.com/patents/.....dq=2592873
Comment by Firebrand38 — March 15, 2010 @ 8:01 am
I can just imagine the headlines – “Returing Moon Rocket Crash Blamed on Sneezing Sheep.”
NASA’s motto “Missed it by that much.”
Comment by Toronto — March 15, 2010 @ 8:47 am
An excellent follow-up to “So You Want to Have a Love Affair?”
Comment by Naked Bunny with a Whip — March 15, 2010 @ 10:36 am
Sorta like an inverted supergun? http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Supergun
Comment by Christoph Geisler — March 15, 2010 @ 11:04 am
Who’s gonna want to live in that house, knowing that a speeding rocket is flying that close?
Comment by Rick Auricchio — March 15, 2010 @ 6:19 pm
Its ridiculously impractical, unbelievably dangerous, and overtly sexual, all at the same time.
Comment by John M. Hanna — March 15, 2010 @ 6:21 pm
Ole D.B. came up with this idea when his wife commented on his “coming too fast” problem.
Comment by carlm — March 15, 2010 @ 10:55 pm
“Its ridiculously impractical, unbelievably dangerous, and overtly sexual, all at the same time.”
Just like sex.
Comment by Noob — March 16, 2010 @ 1:23 am
Toronto: I didn’t know Maxwell Smart was a NASA spokesperson
Comment by Jari — March 16, 2010 @ 10:16 am
“Its ridiculously impractical, unbelievably dangerous, and overtly sexual, all at the same time.”
Are we talking about the rocket catcher or the issue cover?
Comment by Snark — March 18, 2010 @ 3:45 am
@Snark: YES!
Comment by Don — March 18, 2010 @ 6:44 am