2007-09-20 05:08:56 · 9 answers · asked by Anonymous in Science & Mathematics ➔ Physics
He is incorrect. Gravity is still pulling on them from the mass of the Earth. The "weightlessness" as it is called is caused by the sheer speed at which the astronauts are whipping around in orbit around the Earth. This means they are pretty much in free fall causing a seemingly weightless astronaut to float.
2007-09-20 05:18:33 · answer #1 · answered by mainevent4123 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
mainevent4123 is so far the the closest to having the correct answer.
Your "weight" depends on how hard gravity is pulling on you, which depends on how far you are from the center of the earth. Astronauts in orbit are typically only about 200 miles off the ground. That's only 5% farther from the center of the earth than you and I, and that in turn means that orbiting astronauts still have about 91% of their "ground" weight.
Astronauts FEEL weightless because the gravity up there is pulling EVERYTHING along an identical curved path. It's pulling the space shuttle along the same path as the astronauts. When gravity is the ONLY force acting on two objects, they both follow the same path without bumping into each other. So if you're holding onto a handle in the space shuttle, and then you let go, nothing happens (you don't "fall" to the floor), because gravity is pulling both you and the space shutting at the same rate.
2007-09-20 05:35:03 · answer #2 · answered by RickB 7 · 1⤊ 0⤋
This is incorrect. They do have weight, g is only marginally smaller within Earth's orbit (like, where the space shuttle goes).
However, they have *apparent* weightlessness, because they are in free fall. Like if you jump off a high diving board, or go sky diving. Until you reach your terminal velocity, you are apparently weightless.
2007-09-20 06:56:12 · answer #3 · answered by tinned_tuna 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
This is incorrect because when astronauts are in orbit they are not weightless, but their mass is constant. The difference is the gravity because earth has a greater gravitational pull than on the moon and in orbit.
2007-09-20 05:16:01 · answer #4 · answered by Darkskinnyboy 6 · 0⤊ 2⤋
The point that has been overlooked is that the astronaut is moving forward as he falls, the path of his fall is that of a arc that matches the curvature of the Earth's surface, thus he is in continuous free fall, he is weightless for as long as this path is continued, he never gets closer to the Earth's surface.
2007-09-20 12:23:03 · answer #5 · answered by johnandeileen2000 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
A freind says astronauts are weightless because they are beond beond the pull of earth gravity.
2007-09-20 05:19:34 · answer #6 · answered by dragonkluth 1 · 0⤊ 1⤋
they still have their mass, but yes they are weightless, I think... and on the moon their weight is 6 times smaller than weight on earth !
2007-09-20 05:16:51 · answer #7 · answered by Equinox 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋
actually, even if you're very far from a heavenly body, you'll still have weight... you'll just feel weightless because the attractive force between you and the distant body is negligibly small.
2007-09-20 05:19:58 · answer #8 · answered by miguel_yorro 2 · 0⤊ 1⤋
he was wrong
2007-09-20 07:07:08 · answer #9 · answered by TRACER 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋