From: bondage@frontiernet.net   
      
   David Summers wrote:   
   >   
   > What do you think the minimum launch cost would be to orbit?  I'm   
   > interested in what factors may apply:  launch fees, basic insurance,   
   > bribes, whatever.   
   >   
   > For the purposes of answering this, I have a 200 gram Estes rocket   
   > fueled by unobtainium.  As we all know, unobtainium is free and allows   
   > SSTO in 200 gram Estes rockets!  So the only costs would be launch   
   > fees.   
      
      
      Under those circumstances, I would think fuel costs would dominate,   
   much as they now do for commercial aircraft.   
      
      
   > The reason I ask is, of course, the recent papers on the $1,000 per   
   > pound launch minimums.  They state that insurance costs and range   
   > launch fees would set that minimum.  Can you legally avoid the launch   
   > range fees, for example by building a very small rocket and building   
   > your own very small launch range (a la Sea Launch)?  Do the per flight   
   > insurance rates scale with rocket size, launch location (the middle of   
   > the ocean, say), flight rate, or anything else?   
      
      
      Again, others here will answer this better than I, but I woul think   
   insurance rates are more closely related to the vehicle's   
   performance/accident record. If, after enough flight history, it shows   
   it flies as safely as most commercial airliners, it'll likely be insured   
   like one. (Complicated by the fact that ELVs can only track the   
   performance of a *design.* By definition, each individual launcher flies   
   only once.)   
      
      Of course, a large base of insured operators helps, too. Current ELVs   
   can claim neither. Few flights across which risk can be spread, and   
   reliability not close enough to that of commercial aircraft.   
      
      
      
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