INSUBCONTINENT EXCLUSIVE:
"This probably helps explain why Schmidt bought Relativity Space," I commented on the social media site X after Schmidt's remarks
A day later, Schmidt replied with a single word, "Yes."There are relatively few US launch companies that either have large rockets or are
The options for a would-be space entrepreneur who wants to control their own access to space are limited
SpaceX and Blue Origin are already owned by billionaires who have total decision-making authority
United Launch Alliance's Vulcan rocket is expensive, and its existing manifest is long already
Rocket Lab's Neutron vehicle is coming soon, but it may not be large enough for Schmidt's ambitions.That leaves Relativity Space, which may
be within a couple of years of flying the partially reusable Terran R rocket
If fully realized, Terran R would be a beastly launch vehicle capable of launching 33.5 metric tons to low-Earth orbit in expendable
If you were a billionaire seeking to put large data centers into space and wanted control of launch, Relativity is probably the only game in
town.As Ars has previously reported, there are some considerable flaws with Relativity's approach to developing Terran R
However, these problems can be fixed with additional money, and Schmidt has brought that to the company over the last half-year.Schmidt does
not possess the wealth of an Elon Musk or Jeff Bezos
His personal fortune is roughly $20 billion, so approximately an order of magnitude less
This explains why, according to financial industry sources, Schmidt is presently seeking additional partners to bankroll a revitalized
Relativity.Solving launch is just one of the challenges this idea faces, of course
How big would these data centers be? Where would they go within an increasingly cluttered low-Earth orbit? Could space-based solar power
meet their energy needs? Can all of this heat be radiated away efficiently in space? Economically, would any of this make sense?These are
But Schmidt is correct that the current trajectory of power and environmental demands created by AI data centers is unsustainable
It is good that someone is thinking big about solving big problems.
