Artificial Gravity

Back in 1923 Hermann Oberth suggested that two individual space vehicles could be connected by a flexible cable and spun up to a certain velocity with the use of jets thrusting in opposite directions. At that time the weightlessness of space was only a guess, unproved by the rocket vehicles that were still dreams. But nowadays the quest for artificial gravity is motivated by the known adverse affects on human beings of long-term stays in micro-gravity. The more serious of these affects include cardiovascular deconditioning, orthostatic intolerance, muscular atrophy, and skeleton demineralization.

Medical countermeasures include an increase in exercise, extra dietary calcium, and other pharmaceuticals. But none of these measures have shown to be effective and free of side effects for long-duration missions. The crew will also have to deal with 10 minutes of deceleration up to 5-G. in maneuvers at the end of the trans-Mars trajectory. Those included in the surface experiments would undergo even further deceleration during the descent, followed by immediate activities that may last up to months.

• Centripetal Acceleration and its effects
• Craft and Tether
• Propellant and Spin Up/Down

Artificial Gravity Links :

• Centrifuge Facility Project Home Page
• Artificial Gravity from Virginia Commonwealth University
• Medical Research on Artificial Gravity using centrifuges (NASA)
• Artificial Gravity Solution from Colorado State's K-12 WWW Interface