Comments by "David Himmelsbach" (@davidhimmelsbach557) on "" video.

Obviously, this scheme works best atop a mountain -- like those in Hawaii. It also works best for mass produced satellites, which is where the industry is headed. Such objects could be injected into orbit faster than they could be shot down by anti-satellite weaponry. And... this scheme could be the solution to sending fuel and materials into LEO at the lowest cost.
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@wtfiswiththosehandles True, BUT, nothing stops this scheme from being replicated, clustered, even. In the beginning, I'd guess that their primary customer just needs supplies and materials...ice, even. Using hydrogen gas instead of air would permit a much higher velocity at Mach 1 as well. This would be a two-stage pump-down. First a decent vacuum -- then a nitrogen purge -- then hydrogen would displace the nitrogen -- but at a pretty low absolute pressure. The rupture seal would covered by a nitrogen gap and robust metal cap until seconds before the Big Toss. Due to the starting shock, an outer shell/skin will be necessary. Twenty-seconds -- or so -- after the Big Toss you'd be out of the atmosphere... and the exterior would be shed to improve ultimate performance. If the Big Island was used, the discards would land well west of California. Burning propellant upon the Big Toss might be delayed until out of the atmosphere, too.
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@wtfiswiththosehandles The VC folks funding this are the most prestigious on Sand Hill Road, Palo Alto. So, I'll bet they are entirely dialed in. This early in, I'm just impressed by their backers. Musk's first stuff only hinted at what was to come. I hope that these fellows ramp up their scheme. Price to orbit has ALWAYS been the big bug-bear for near-space economic advance. I believe we're witnessing a transition as significant as the first railroads. Yes, it's that epic. It's why Space X has such a fan base. This device would also lend itself to the military. So I can see DARPA funding for this and that.
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