Are We Building a Space Elevator?

The concept of a Space Elevator might seem like science fiction, right? However, what if we told you that a company in Japan has promised to make this a reality? Just imagine pressing the "up" button in an elevator, and as you begin to ascend, you realize you're not going up to the roof of a skyscraper – you're going directly to space! Incredible? Yes, and possible! A space elevator would indeed be the holy grail of space exploration. Launching rockets is currently difficult and very expensive; thus, such a project could not only save billions of dollars but also represent the greatest engineering achievement ever realized. Can scientists develop a functioning space elevator prototype, and if so, when can we expect to see it?