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I really feel like it's high time we try a rotating wheel space station to see if the artificial gravity fixes problems people develop in zero gravity.

by ginko 5y ago

dwohnitmok 5y ago
My impression is that a rotating wheel space station, while theoretically well within the grasp of current engineering ability, would be extremely expensive given that we've never done it before.
- bjelkeman-again 5y ago
  These guys are planning to fly a prototype in 2023. https://orbitalassembly.com/ https://orbitalassembly.com/
  - mhio 5y ago
    That's awesome! At least the prototype part for an automated truss build that they have the engineering for. The subsequent project timelines seem pretty fanciful, like we've built a truss then "hey presto", Pioneer station appears. That then made me question the initial prototype (which is q4 2023 so really 2024/2025). Have you been following this group for a while?
    - bjelkeman-again 5y ago
      No, I just found out about them.
- TheDudeMan 5y ago
  And that it's big and heavy.
- pfdietz 5y ago
  It depends on what level of gravity is needed. The mass scales dramatically with acceleration.
- bArray 5y ago
  You wouldn't need an entire wheel, just two equally weighted compartments spinning about a centre point. In theory that's far cheaper. Perhaps you would purposely pump fluid back and fourth to maintain the correct centre of mass. You could imagine a system where you 'space elevator' objects and people via the connecting cabling, whilst pumping fluid to offset the mass. You would likely want each side to be manned by two people. You could later add more modules if designed correctly too. They would likely approach and attach to the centre (in a pair, one either sude), match the spin and then slot into their respective 'slots' and rotate on an arm.
- maccam94 5y ago
  It is prohibitively expensive until SpaceX's Starship brings launch costs down further.
etatoby 5y ago
IIRC a spinning space station would only be beneficial if it was very large and thus far from Earth and expensive. Otherwise the difference in gravity acting on different sides of the body and more importantly the Coriolis forces would wreak havoc and cause more harm than good.

I really feel like it's high time we try a rotating wheel space station to see if the artificial gravity fixes problems people develop in zero gravity.

by ginko 5y ago

I really feel like it's high time we try a rotating wheel space station to see if the artificial gravity fixes problems people develop in zero gravity.

dwohnitmok 5y ago

My impression is that a rotating wheel space station, while theoretically well within the grasp of current engineering ability, would be extremely expensive given that we've never done it before.

bjelkeman-again 5y ago
These guys are planning to fly a prototype in 2023. https://orbitalassembly.com/ https://orbitalassembly.com/
- mhio 5y ago
  That's awesome! At least the prototype part for an automated truss build that they have the engineering for. The subsequent project timelines seem pretty fanciful, like we've built a truss then "hey presto", Pioneer station appears. That then made me question the initial prototype (which is q4 2023 so really 2024/2025). Have you been following this group for a while?
  - bjelkeman-again 5y ago
    No, I just found out about them.
TheDudeMan 5y ago
And that it's big and heavy.
pfdietz 5y ago
It depends on what level of gravity is needed. The mass scales dramatically with acceleration.
bArray 5y ago
You wouldn't need an entire wheel, just two equally weighted compartments spinning about a centre point. In theory that's far cheaper. Perhaps you would purposely pump fluid back and fourth to maintain the correct centre of mass. You could imagine a system where you 'space elevator' objects and people via the connecting cabling, whilst pumping fluid to offset the mass. You would likely want each side to be manned by two people. You could later add more modules if designed correctly too. They would likely approach and attach to the centre (in a pair, one either sude), match the spin and then slot into their respective 'slots' and rotate on an arm.
maccam94 5y ago
It is prohibitively expensive until SpaceX's Starship brings launch costs down further.

etatoby 5y ago

IIRC a spinning space station would only be beneficial if it was very large and thus far from Earth and expensive. Otherwise the difference in gravity acting on different sides of the body and more importantly the Coriolis forces would wreak havoc and cause more harm than good.