During current space missions there is no gravity within the space vehicles. This results in a serious muscle degradation of astronauts. The only countermeasure for this problem seems to be sports. Alas this cannot stop the muscle degradation completely. The other serious problem about long term space travel is the high-level radiation from the sun which can not be shielded properly. But I don't wonna talk about this second major problem.
It's a bit strange to see all these committed people at NASA (and possibly other space institutions) work so hard on training astronauts to bear and fight this muscle degradation in regard to the planned Mission to Mars.
It seems that nobody in national space industries is willing to accept the fact that a human being is simply not made for weightlessness.
Accepting this would make things so much easier: Because it would allow us to set all forces free for the development of artificial gravity.
The loyalty to maintain old ways of thinking is widespread. If you look at all those people involved into the preparation of the human element, it's understandable: Having artificial gravity would make many scientists and engineers loose their sophisticated current projects.
However there are always other projects available and I bet even more interesting ones. But the habit of wanting to understand the process of weightlessness makes scientists and engineers kinda blind for the major uselessness of their actions: Of course it would be nice to understand more about the human body and weightlessness but the current importance of weightlessness is irrational in my point of view.
As long as the concept of artificial gravity is not yet tested, noone can really say how the human body would react. This might also deter people from using it.
The absurdity of training men and women to fight the non-presence of gravity: The absurdity of traing people to fight the non-presence of gravity can be made more obvious by simply imagining what would happen if the same scientists would want to explore the other hardly explored realm beside space: The realm of the earth oceans.
No scientist would want to train humans to fight the forces of the deep sea: Here it's generally accepted by people that technical help is needed to explore the depths of the oceans. Why not so in space ?? Of course one day it might be possible to get humans accustomed to the deep sea by implanting gills. But we're talking about present day science here.
It's rediculous to spend so much energy, time and money in space to do something that does not provide a good return on investment. And I claim that only artificial gravity would make life and work and the production of goods economically viable.
To show the absurdity of current efforts let's see another example: A top athlete is trained to swim against the continuous stream of a river. The athlete can fight the power of a steady stream for let's say a year and thereby keep his position. But the thing is: He can never win during his lifetime.
Conclusion: If the human race is going to let people stay in space for more than a rediculously unefficient short time period, there is a need for artificial gravity.
The usual argument against this concept is: The additional costs are tremendous. But I heavily doubt that: Has anyone checked the truth of this argument lately (in regard to technical realizability and costs) ?
Besides the trick is to make the impossible affordable !!
How can we produce artificial gravity ? - Currently there seems to be only one way to produce artificial gravity and that is by using a spinning wheel: However, variations are imaginable of course to minimize costs:
Nobody says that the spining wheel concept must be implemented by a homogeneous wheel. What we need here is simply some little amount of fantasy to alter the concept:
Let's assume for example that the ISS (International space station) - even though it is unsuitably constructed for weightlessness (i.e. drawers in the ceilings and the floors and such stuff) - is meant to be transferred into a space station with artificial gravity:
1) Well, all joints would have to be reinforced to make load changes bearable in cases of sudden acceleration changes of the spinning process.
2) All ISS-modules would have to be ordered in a vertical fashion (with their larger dimensions) in regard to the surface of the earth: The reason for this is that the spinning axis should be vertical to the surface of the earth. Many vertical configurations are imaginable and that includes modules being ordered in parallel (but of course still vertical) to the earth surface.
Since the ISS is just about 350 km above the surface of the earth it is within reach of earth gravity. If you would then spin the wheel with its axis parallel to the surface of the earth, you would have the problem to accelerate people inside the wheel half of the 360°turn with the acceleration of the wheel plus the acceleration of the earth (earth gravity) while you're going downwards (towards the earth surface) and while you're turning the wheel upwards away from the surface of the earth you would still have the wheel acceleration but thistime minus earth acceleration (earth gravity).
This would make astronauts feel pretty much like in a roller coaster and of course it would not be wishful to upset a stomach without need.
The problem can be avoided by letting the wheel circle around an axis vertical to the surface of the earth. Putting it thisway, earth gravity does not contribute to the acceleration of the spinning wheel.
3) A few high load non-metallic wires would be nice of maybe 100 m length or less.
4) A counter weight would be obligatory: It could be made of waste modules and filled with no more needed fluids or solid materials.
5) Connect the wires with the ISS and the counter weight(s) and let the ATV (the European Autonomous transfer vehicle), the Russian progress space freighter or the American Space Shuttle start the rotation of the total construct.
By the way, if we put a metal fabric onto the non-metallic wires at the wires towards the counter weight, we can even produce electricity because we are moving throught the magnetic field of the earth and electric power is induced into the metallic part of the wire.
Final statemmet: Nobody can tell me that these changes cannot be made for an affordable prize by private companies. Of course, if NASA was the sole provider of these changes, I bet that billions would be spent. But that does not mean that billions are really necessary to get the job done ! Of course well established private companies will probably take what they can get if NASA asks them to make an offer... so this might rather be a call for all start ups to get the job done.
This article was heavily revised on the 9th August 2008.
