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In science fiction technology that induces a gravitational pull is often sidelined as just a convenient way of getting people to walk on a spacecraft. The implications of gravity that can be turned on and off are actually much bigger than that. Theoretically you could help launch ships into space by using a satellite equipped with an artificial gravity generator to lighten the gravitational pull in an area. This could allow to save a considerable amount of fuel or in this case launch monstrously large ships into space. Spacecrafts the size of multiple football fields could be constructed on earth, without the need to send rockets back and forth into space to assemble pieces bit by bit. On paper this all sounds fantastic, but realistically it would be much trickier than that.

The handwavium generator is a theoretical device that can generate varying magnitudes of gravitational force. You could set it to moon gravity (1.625 m/s2 about 0.166 ɡ) or earth gravity (9,807 m/s² exactly 1g) at the flick of a switch. The device can generate gravity on par with a planet but doesn't have the same radius, so naturally the area of effect is smaller.

Obviously I don't want to set it in orbit to 1g to cancel out gravity completely, or worse have it come crashing into earth. It would have to be half or less than 1g to not cause unwanted destruction on the surface. The predicted effects would be a localised expansion of the atmosphere, a drop in sea levels and of course everything would seem lighter. The idea is that the artificial gravity field dips just on the earths surface on the linear center, to affect only the region that needs to be lightened.

What would permit such a system to work? Are there any unforeseen consequences?

In science fiction technology that induces a gravitational pull is often sidelined as just a convenient way of getting people to walk on a spacecraft. The implications of gravity that can be turned on and off are actually much bigger than that. Theoretically you could help launch ships into space by using a satellite equipped with an artificial gravity generator to lighten the gravitational pull in an area. This could allow to save a considerable amount of fuel or in this case launch monstrously large ships into space. Spacecrafts the size of multiple football fields could be constructed on earth, without the need to send rockets back and forth into space to assemble pieces bit by bit. On paper this all sounds fantastic, but realistically it would be much trickier than that.

The handwavium generator is a theoretical device that can generate varying magnitudes of gravitational force. You could set it to moon gravity (1.625 m/s2 about 0.166 ɡ) or earth gravity (9,807 m/s² exactly 1g) at the flick of a switch. The device can generate gravity on par with a planet but doesn't have the same radius, so naturally the area of effect is smaller.

Obviously I don't want to set it in orbit to 1g to cancel out gravity completely, or worse have it come crashing into earth. It would have to be half or less than 1g to not cause unwanted destruction on the surface. The predicted effects would be a localised expansion of the atmosphere, a drop in sea levels and of course everything would seem lighter. The idea is that the artificial gravity field dips just on the earths surface on the linear center, to affect only the region that needs to be lightened.

What would permit such a system to work? Are there any unforeseen consequences?

Edit: This isn’t a reality check. “Gravity a interacts with gravity b, can this be used?” is what is being asked. Obviously creating gravity is fiction. Please review your answers.

In science fiction technology that induces a gravitational pull is often sidelined as just a convenient way of getting people to walk on a spacecraft. The implications of gravity that can be turned on and off are actually much bigger than that. Theoretically you could help launch ships into space by using a satellite equipped with an artificial gravity generator to lighten the gravitational pull in an area. This could allow to save a considerable amount of fuel or in this case launch monstrously large ships into space. Spacecrafts the size of multiple football fields could be constructed on earth, without the need to send rockets back and forth into space to assemble pieces bit by bit. On paper this all sounds fantastic, but realistically it would be much trickier than that.

The handwavium generator is a theoretical device that can generate varying magnitudes of gravitational force. You could set it to moon gravity (1.625 m/s2 about 0.166 ɡ) or earth gravity (9,807 m/s² exactly 1g) at the flick of a switch. The device can generate gravity on par with a planet but doesn't have the same radius, so naturally the area of effect is smaller.

Obviously I don't want to set it in orbit to 1g to cancel out gravity completely, or worse have it come crashing into earth. It would have to be half or less than 1g to not cause unwanted destruction on the surface. The predicted effects would be a localised expansion of the atmosphere, a drop in sea levels and of course everything would seem lighter. The idea is to have two or three satellites create a fraction of earths gravity to then have a lighter area in the radical center.

What would permit such a system to work? Are there any unforeseen consequences?

In science fiction technology that induces a gravitational pull is often sidelined as just a convenient way of getting people to walk on a spacecraft. The implications of gravity that can be turned on and off are actually much bigger than that. Theoretically you could help launch ships into space by using a satellite equipped with an artificial gravity generator to lighten the gravitational pull in an area. This could allow to save a considerable amount of fuel or in this case launch monstrously large ships into space. Spacecrafts the size of multiple football fields could be constructed on earth, without the need to send rockets back and forth into space to assemble pieces bit by bit. On paper this all sounds fantastic, but realistically it would be much trickier than that.

The handwavium generator is a theoretical device that can generate varying magnitudes of gravitational force. You could set it to moon gravity (1.625 m/s2 about 0.166 ɡ) or earth gravity (9,807 m/s² exactly 1g) at the flick of a switch. The device can generate gravity on par with a planet but doesn't have the same radius, so naturally the area of effect is smaller.

Obviously I don't want to set it in orbit to 1g to cancel out gravity completely, or worse have it come crashing into earth. It would have to be half or less than 1g to not cause unwanted destruction on the surface. The predicted effects would be a localised expansion of the atmosphere, a drop in sea levels and of course everything would seem lighter. The idea is that the artificial gravity field dips just on the earths surface on the linear center, to affect only the region that needs to be lightened.

What would permit such a system to work? Are there any unforeseen consequences?