Vibration as a means to reduce bone loss in microgravity

I suspect that someday there will be rotating habitats producing a full
1g. I just don't think that's necessarily going to happen with the first
worker settlements in HEO or on Luna, habitats for which workers will come
and go in accordance with duty cycles.

We know that in LEO, exercise can mitigate the effects of microgravity for
periods of up to 437 days. Perhaps exercise combined with some other
mitigation measure (e.g., vibration or electrical shock therapy) could
extend that period much further.

On Luna, with 1/6g, it seems likely to me that exercise combined with
other mitigation measures could allow for duty cycles of two years or
more.

With these fairly long timeframes, it seems likely to me that in the early
days of space industrialization, habitats in HEO need not rotate or if
they do rotate, need not produce a full 1g. The reason is that the
workers will have duty cycles of short enough duration (say, less than 2
years) so as not to require full 1g.

So, let me phrase a question to Lucio and Mike: For what duration of
duty cycle do you believe that full 1g is necessary for a worker habitat?

Ron

"Combs, Mike" mikecombs@...
11/08/01 09:23 AM

However, bone loss is only part of the microgravity problem. There are
also
weirder effects like immune system depression and endocrinal anomalies, I
think.

Quite so. I'm always skeptical about any proposed solution short of
actually providing a substitute for gravity.

Regards,

Mike Combs