Is this true? "Astronauts in orbit are weightless cuz they aren't affected by the pull of earth’s gravity."

Question

This is another question I need a physical science perspective on. I'm needing to know if this is supported by science and why or why not. Can anyone help straighten me out? Thanks!

Answer 1

The astronauts feel that they are weightless because there is no gravitational force there is 0' of gravitational force.

Answer 2

wow uh no they r completely weightless even if there orbiting the earth.

Answer 3

Not exactly. Weight is the effect of the pull exerted by other objects. On Earth, it is the pull of the planet itself that we feel. In space, that pull is decreased by the square of the distance from Earth. There is still some pull from other heavenly bodies, from the ship, and even from the other astronauts, but all these are minor.

Answer 4

They experience "zero gravity" because the vectors created by forward speed and downward speed (created by gravity) are  the same on them and their spacecraft and keep the both at a constant altitude above the earth.

Answer 5

NO! Not true at all.

Astronauts EXPERIENCE the feeling of weightlesness because they are falling towards the earth at the same speed as the spacecraft around them. In other words, the floor of the craft (or more often, the ceiling, since the space shuttle flies 'upside down' in relation to the earth) is moving AWAY from the astronaut at the same speed the astronaut is moving TOWARDS it ... so although the sensation is weightlesness, both the astronaut and the shuttle are being pulled by gravity downwards.

They just happen to be falling SLOWLY...that's all. :)

Answer 6

Astronauts in space are actually experiencing apparent weightlessness. It happens when your acceleration is equal to acceleration due to gravity. They are in orbit because of gravity otherwise they would be flying out to infinity. Also, they can maintain their acceleration because of absence of drag force due to absence of air in space.

Answer 7

easy, no. weight is a force made from gravity, mass is kept the same when in space but weight is non-existant without gravity, and gravity does not exist in a vaccum, and space is a vaccum

Answer 8

Well... yes, they are weightless... somewhat.

They still have their body mass but the gravity forcing them one way or another is gone.

You can feel the same type of feeling... very quickly... if you ride one of the fastest roller coasters down the first drop. Feel how you're somewhat weightless and feel like you're going to fly out of the seat? That's what they feel... 24/7.

I just want to say that it would suck.

Answer 9

Yes, they are affected, but it sure doesn't look like it, does it? They appear to be weightless. The whole answer might come as a surprise. The gravity in orbit where they operate is a little less than 90% of what it is here on earth, but the effective gravity is almost zero. The reason for this is based in physics. It will take another question to have it revealed. Shuttle astronauts in orbit operate in what is called microgravity

Answer 10

No.  In space of other planets - our weight changes due to the change in gravity.  Weight is deeply affected by different degrees of gravity.  But our mass is still the same.