Data centers in space makes no sense

>>ajyoon+(OP)
What’s there not to like? Superconductors. Free electricity. No cooling necessary.

Put those three together and maybe it’s possible to push physics to its limits. Faster networking, maybe 4x-5x capacity per unit compared to earth. Servicing is a pain, might be cheaper to just replace the hardware when a node goes bad.

But it mainly makes sense to those who have the capability and can do it cheaply (compared to the rest). There’s only one company that I can think of and that is SpaceX. They are closing in on (or passed) 8,000 satellites. Vertical integration means their cost-base will always be less than any competitor.

>>sheeps+Yu
> No cooling necessary.

This is false, it's hard to cool things in space. Space (vacuum) is a very good insulator.

3 are ways to cool things (lose energy):

  - Conduction
  - Convection
  - Radiation

In space, only radiation works, and it's the least efficient of those 3 options.

>>jasonp+Iv
Superconductors.

>>sheeps+Tw
Magnets.

(We're just saying random physics things right?)

>>IshKeb+Vz
No, just you. Superconductors don’t get hot. There is 0 resistance in superconducting mediums. Theoretically you could manufacture a lot of the electricity conducting medium out of a superconductor. Even the cheapest kind will superconduct in space (because it’s so cold).

Radiation may be sufficient for the little heat that does get produced.

>>sheeps+JJ
Right. You build your computers out of superconductors, and they don't get hot.

Sadly, they also don't compute.

> Even the cheapest kind will superconduct in space (because it’s so cold).

Is this a drinking game? Take a drink whenever someone claims that heat is not a problem because space is cold? Because I'm going to have alcohol poisoning soon.

Let's see how cold you feel when you leave the Earth's shadow and the sun hits you.

zlacker