The Mudcat Café TM
Thread #161123 Message #3828280
Posted By: beardedbruce
23-Dec-16 - 11:25 AM
Thread Name: BS: Space program goals
Subject: RE: BS: Space program goals
"Centrifugal force. I wonder why they didn't do that on the ISS. "
Well, the ISS was designed as an Earth Observation system- much of what it does is tied to looking at the Earth. Harder to do if it was spinning. In addition, the structural requirements of a spinning system would have made the solar arrays a LOT more difficult to install and use.
As it is, one can "park" something outside the ISS, and it stays in that relative position. If there were spin on the ISS, each approach would have to be to the central axis, and anything placed outside at any other point would go off at the spin velocity.
Not the Nat Geo special. I have seen the fictional "The Martian", which is not a bad film. Not always scientifically accurate, but that's Hollywood for you.