What would a space traveler experience in a spinning, pitching, tumbling ship in zero-G?

Question

I recently taken up science fiction reading after years of abstinence, and the hero of the story is stealing a ship. The controls are for aliens, so he's pushing buttons and the ship is firing thrusters in many directions, seemingly at random. If he weren't strapped in, what would he really experience?

Since it's impossible for me to choose a best answer, I'll let it go to a vote.

I think the beer can answers my question best, though him feeling almost nothing if strapped in is also correct. I can't figure out why he wouldn't be able to push buttons in zero-G, though. And I've got a horrible cold, so I'm just too darned sick to think any more. (cough, cough, sniffle)

Thanks!

And, noteasilyfooled, great phrase, mad jig.

Answer 1

He'll get banged around by inertial forces. Every time the ship moves left, he gets thrown to the right, etc. Also, whichever direction the ship accelerates in will seem like up. I imagine he'd be bruised, disoriented, and maybe nauseated.

Answer 2

It depends. Does the traveler have a point of referrence? If there was absolutely no point of referrence, such as a star or something visible to indicate the spinning and such, he would most likely not notice the movement. For all intents and purposes, he would act like a part of the ship and spin, pitch, and tumble. He/she would not be tossed around inside the ship. Despite what has been answered previously, this is NOT a simple physics question because it deals with some yet theoretical concepts.

Answer 3

If he is in a 0 G environment how can he be pushing buttons?

Ignoring the problem related to inability to exert pressure on buttons, if he was in the center of the ship, with no contact with the ship, his movement would be solely determined by the movement of the ship, but only when the ship contacted and pushed him one way or another. Once he had been given a push, he would continue to move in that direction until he was pushed in another direction.

He would move with the ship and it would be little different than if he was on earth when the ship pushes him.. The G pressure would be whatever force is applied by the pushing.

Based on your description, he would be beaten up by the continual banging into the walls of the ship, but it depends on the velocity as much as it does the motion.

Answer 4

Depends if the ship has gravitational generators to counter thrust. While they're not talked about very much, you have to assume that they exist for many science fiction spaceships because of their high acceleration capabilities. If you're getting to light speed in a manner of minutes, you'd be squashed flat otherwise. Also, it's just another application of the artificial gravity that keeps people walking around the ship when they're in orbit.

So, in most science fiction spaceships, our hero would be sitting comfortably in his pilot chair, and he may not even realize his ship is doing a mad jig.

Answer 5

Put a rock in an empty beer can and shake it. That's what would happen. There are a lot of people here with no grasp of even simple physics.

Answer 6

since it is a zero gravity, however the ship twists or spins, the person inside will not have absolutely any effect at all- he will be held in vacuum- in a floating state

Answer 7

Our sense of up and down is due to gravity, so without it, we would have no notion of changing from up to down. In fact, in absolute 0-g, there is not up and down whatsoever.

So, he would move with the ship, assuming he was strapped in, and feel no sensation in his stomach of turning upside down.

Answer 8

Nausea.

Pass the in-flight sick bag.

Answer 9

well, if he just floated in the middle, wouldn't the ship just spin around him?

Answer 10

nausia. lots and lots of nausia.