It should be the largest and deepest swimming pool in the world that astronauts, for example, can make grateful use of in preparation for their space missions.

It’s not uncommon for astronauts to go lower in preparation for their space missions. For example, they dive in specially designed swimming pools, such as NASA’s Neutral Buoyancy Laboratory (NBL) in Texas. In this huge pool, after donning special wetsuits that simulate a feeling of weightlessness, astronauts practice their spacewalks. Thanks to a simulated international space station resting at the bottom of the pool, such a spacewalk can be prepared in great detail.

Blue Abyss

However, NASA’s swimming pool – which measures some 62 meters long, 30 meters wide and just over 12 meters deep – pales in comparison to the pool that a British company now plans to build in Cornwall. The swimming pool – called Blue Abyss – must be about 50 by 40 meters in size and have a 50 meter deep shaft. The swimming pool would soon contain about 42,000 cubic meters of water. That’s about as much water as 17 Olympic swimming pools or 168 million cups of tea.

The pool is perfect for astronaut training, says CEO John Vickers. “Clients who train astronauts will mainly use the pool to simulate weightlessness in space, much like that in NASA’s Neutral Buoyancy Lab happens.”

Spaceport Cornwall

It is of course no coincidence that the swimming pool will soon be built in Cornwall. The pool will soon be next to Cornwall Airport Newquay. In the coming years, the airport is to be transformed – with a substantial investment from the British government – ​​into Spaceport Cornwall and become the home of Virgin Orbit, part of Richard Branson’s Virgin Group and specializing in the launch of small satellites.

Above the pool is a roof that can be slid open. This makes it possible to also lower large objects – such as a counterfeit space station – into the pool. Image: Cityscape Digital / Blue Abyss.

Training center

The super-deep pool, in which certain conditions in space can be simulated, fits very well with such great ambitions. A training center for astronauts is also to be built next to the swimming pool. This will soon include a centrifuge, in which astronauts can take a seat to get used to the enormous g-forces they have to deal with on the way to their destination.

Other possibilities
But not only astronauts will soon be able to indulge themselves in Cornwall, says Vickers. “What makes the Blue Abyss unique is that the pool is interesting for many sectors.” For example, researchers can use the pool to test their remote-controlled submarine robots. And the navy can also test new technologies in the deep bath under controlled conditions. Offshore energy companies are also excited; for example, they can conduct research in the swimming pool into the floating windmills that are still under development and the best ways to anchor and inspect them. In addition, (commercial) divers can also train here.

The plans are met with great enthusiasm, including from British astronaut Tim Peake. He hopes the pool and training center “can increase our understanding of how humans and technology can function in extreme environments – for the sake of humanity and the planet.” However, it remains to be seen whether the swimming pool and other facilities will actually be built. The design is there, but the permits have not yet been finalized. Vickers, however, is optimistic. “We are confident that the Blue Abyss will become a reality.” Once the permits are in place, it is expected to take around 18 months to build the swimming pool and adjacent training center. Construction – which could be completed in 2023 at best – would cost around £150 million, or €175 million.