posted on May, 1 2008 @ 08:46 AM
I can think of quite a few problems... one is cost. A structure that big would be extremely expensive.
Two would be safety. You can't predict exactly what conditions it would be susceptible to, so you can't engineer it strong enough to withstand the
unforeseen. Examples might be planes flying into it, birds, lightning strikes, general static electricity from the air itself (St. Elmo's fire), wind
shear from thunderstorms, ice buildup... quite a long list.
Then there's the problem of safety. Should a panel give way, that's a lot of weight to come crashing down. Sort of gives a new twist to the old
phrase "the sky is falling". The idea of automated repair robots is a cool one to think about, but a robot presently can only do what it is
programmed to do, so what happens when something unforeseen causes damage that the bot can't handle?
Next problem is oxygen and water... since there's no rainfall underneath it, the dome would effectively stop all plant life from growing under it. No
plant life = no oxygen. No oxygen = no us.
And I'm still wondering what benefit this would have for the inhabitants... more room for graffiti?
Sorry to shoot it down, but I think this one's better left to the sci-fi books, at least for now.
TheRedneck