Why the Astronauts are Weightless

In my experience I find that very few people know why the astronauts are weightless up in space. This video dispels two common myths and attempts to present a simple explanation of the physics involved.

To elaborate: In order to experience weight you must be accelerating towards something and have something pushing back against that acceleration, such as the ground.

Category:

Education

Tags:

• physical
• science
• weightless
• weightlessness
• astronauts
• space

[cantorock]

you couldn't wait 9 minutes to learn a universal truth that eluded mankind for thousands of years?

[OmegaX06]

Interesting. I would have been the one to say because there is no gravity.

[muscle151]

BTW, the concept is called micro-gravity

[spineless8]

The reason you don't fall to earth in the space shuttle is because of the speed it is travelling at it is free falling to earth at the same rate as the earth is curving

[InTheStateOfIndianna]

This video really helped my studying, thank you !

[jakejakeboom]

@AcDcFoReVeR1993 He should really come out with some more he's good (better than my teacher)

[StitchedMusik]

basically, weight= resistance of gravity?

[AcDcFoReVeR1993]

Anyone knows why this is his last video?

[KirbyNp]

Great video. Thanks.

[GR1o6180339887498948]

@TheIndianMan100 In an airplane you're not falling, but in a spaceship you fall constantly and travel perpendicular to the force of gravity pulling you down. Without gravity you would travel in a straight line, but gravity bends your traveling path, also the earth's surface is bending below you so you never reach the ground. If the airplane starts falling you would feel weightless and hover inside, in the spaceship you're also falling but never reaching the ground. Is this clearer?

[TheIndianMan100]

If you are saying that if you are in a space craft, there is no force pushing back, but then why when you are in an airplane there is a force pushing back? Is it because of the height or is it because of the speed?

[paulio2293]

but they are not SI units.. the kg measures mass, the SI unit for force (or weight) is Kgms^-1 or the "newton" when you step on the scales and see 220lbs, that is clearly your mass, not your weight, since if you take those scales to another planet you will register a different number. A mass of 220lbs measures the quantity of matter, the weight of 100kg measures nothing because the unit does not describe the forces acting on the matter.