Swimming in space... an Alternative to Artificial Gravity?

[Spacescifi]

 

Provided that weight was not an issue and we had a torch drive rocket of sorts... could we avoid the fuel intensive artificial gravity method as well as the rotational gravity method by swimming inside pools in the spaceship?

I know such is not viable IRL because of weight, but  provided my OP scenario could swimming provide enough exercise to keep the body healthy enough while coasting?

The good thing about swimming is that it exercises all the muscles, so combined with resistance weights and a breather, the crew could get a more effective workout while coasting.

Without the hazards of rotation (it does have them) nor the waste of propellant via 1g acceleration.

You may discuss.

Edited November 11, 2019 by Spacescifi

[sevenperforce]

Resistance-based exercise is lighter in weight and seems to work well:

 

[magnemoe]

22 minutes ago, Spacescifi said:

 

Provided that weight was not an issue and we had a torch drive rocket of sorts... could we avoid the fuel intensive artificial gravity method as well as the rotational gravity method by swimming inside pools in the spaceship?

I know such is not viable IRL because of weight, but  provided my OP scenario could swimming provide enough exercise to keep the body healthy enough while coasting?

The good thing about swimming is that it exercises all the muscles, so combined with resistance weights and a breather, the crew could get a more effective workout while coasting.

Without the hazards of rotation (it does have them) nor the waste of propellant via 1g acceleration.

You may discuss.

I guess that would work, the water does double duty as radiation shielding and as emergency reaction mass. 
Make some sort of game out of it. You would need scuba gear but that is good training for space suit use. 
Have plenty of mouthpieces around in the tank to act as emergency oxygen sources. If you have some trust or rotation you also have an surface so you can just go to the surface.

 

[kerbiloid]

In zero-G we don't need water to swim.

[Superfluous J]

1 hour ago, kerbiloid said:

In zero-G we don't need water to swim.

Yeah why not just set up something like Ender's Game's Battle Arena?

And note I do not believe any of this addresses bone decay.

[wumpus]

Do you really want to deal with SCUBA equipment all the time?  Although I think breathable liquids exist, I doubt anyone has long term data on their use.  I'm fairly surprised astronauts haven't taken to strapping on wings: I'm guessing that current spacecraft/spacestations are sufficiently small that simply grabbing a handle and pulling yourself is easier.

[kerbiloid]

Just btw. A couple of years ago there was a thread about waterlife spaceships (i.e. space fishtanks), but they at least have gills.

Spoiler

P.S.
Gills... Gills... If something has gills, is it gilly?
And the ocean. The Eve has an ocean... The Gilly has gills... This should be something actual...

 

[scottadges]

7 hours ago, wumpus said:

I think breathable liquids exist

 

[RCgothic]

Pretty sure that much free water in zero gravity would be an extreme hazard. At least some gravity/spin is required at a minimum. Plus it's heavy, a tonne per m3. It's not something you want to be carrying around on a spacecraft unless it serves dual purpose.

That said, I've heard that if you had a swimming pool on the moon, humans would be able to leap like dolphins. If you were using hydrolox as power, then that's worth taking to the moon for that alone. You could then condense the products and make use of the water byproduct to create the solar system's best water park!

[kerbiloid]

Why should the water-made zero-G be less harmful than a dry one?

[RCgothic]

It's not the composition (identical), it's the behaviour. If you've seen the scene in "Passengers" where the gravity turns off and the effect that had on the swimming pool you'll have some idea.

Water in zero g is sticky. It forms balls. It clings to things and covers surfaces. There's no buoyancy, so you can't escape by letting yourself float. Which way is out? Then when you do get to the surface it clings and distends around you, refusing to let you go. Found an external handhold to pull yourself out? It'll cling to that too and come with you. It's far too difficult to get out of.

In zero g large quantities of water is an extreme drowning hazard.

The moon has gravity so it would be far less hazardous to have your swimming pool there.

Edited November 12, 2019 by RCgothic

[Terwin]

37 minutes ago, RCgothic said:

In zero g large quantities of water is an extreme drowning hazard.

Wasn't there a space-walk where there was a water leak inside a suit, and they had to get them out of the suit quickly so that they did not drown?(water was already covering eyes and nose, so if it covered their mouth they could no longer breathe)

 

This looks like it: https://www.space.com/24835-spacesuit-water-leak-nasa-investigation.html

[kerbiloid]

1 hour ago, RCgothic said:

It's not the composition (identical), it's the behaviour. If you've seen the scene in "Passengers" where the gravity turns off and the effect that had on the swimming pool you'll have some idea.

Btw that funny accident with enormous water bubbles is exactly what I meant in the old discussion with @PB666 about huge orbital settlements not rotating as one piece but with a centrifuge with a landscape inside.
Imagine, the bearing crashes, and the centrifuge stops rotating. Then such Passengers-like bubbles from artificial lakes and rivers will get into the midair and hit everything at the near-centrifuge linear speed.

1 hour ago, RCgothic said:

It clings to things and covers surfaces

Not that it covers, but it becomes multiple droplets due to the surface tension.

1 hour ago, RCgothic said:

There's no buoyancy, so you can't escape by letting yourself float.

You still can push the water and swim to the bubble surface. You don't need bouyancy if you can move.
And like the surface tension doesn't hold you underwater in normal condition, it won't in the zero-G.

1 hour ago, RCgothic said:

In zero g large quantities of water is an extreme drowning hazard.

First of all, they are electric hazard.

***

But anyway spending a week in water unlikely is much more pleasant than spending a week in zero-G.
So, I don't see much sense in the whole idea.

[sevenperforce]

Just now, kerbiloid said:

Not that it covers, but it becomes multiple droplets due to the surface tension.

You still can push the water and swim to the bubble surface. You don't need bouyancy if you can move.
And like the surface tension doesn't hold you underwater in normal condition, it won't in the zero-G.

Surface tension doesn't hold you underwater in normal conditions because gravity pulls the water away. That doesn't happen in microgravity. The surface tension won't hold you underwater so much as the surface tension will leave you coated in water and unable to clear the space around your face for breathing. Watch this video of Col. Hadfield wringing out a washcloth in microgravity:

Spoiler

 

With a bunch of water in microgravity, imagine you are the washcloth trying to get free.

[kerbiloid]

5 minutes ago, sevenperforce said:

Watch this video of Col. Hadfield wringing out a washcloth in microgravity:

And we can see that the water stays gathered in a blob around the washcloth and fingers, doesn't expand around all the body. Even hands are dry.

So, I believe if he gets from a huge water bubble, he obviously can't breath through the nostrils, but he can shake his head as a dog/cat to let the centrifugal forces take away most part of the water from head, then breath with mouth, swallowing excess of the water around, and repeat the shaking procedure until most part of water stays in his clothes.