Read the rest of the Wiki entry. I also urge you to read up on the subject. A simple Google search will lead you to several papers from NASA and other organizations.
>> Tell me: how does the payload get up the elevator? Seems to me that a beamed-energy system is needed to power the climber. Where does the energy come from? Who builds and maintains the laser, and how much do they get paid? How much energy *total* is required to climb up to GEO, and how does that compare to the energy requirements for a rocket?
>Read the rest of the Wiki entry.
Non-responsive. I was hoping to see if *you* have in fact studied up on the topic, and were able to consider the plusses and minuses.
> A simple Google search will lead you to several papers from NASA and other organizations.
No need. I have a big fat binder at home with numerous Air Force, AIAA, NASA and other technical papers and conference proceedings on the topic.