• Question: What does it feel like to be in zero gravity and how astronauts experience this

    Asked by 914trn48 to Anne, Beth, COLFlight, Jon, Tom on 4 Oct 2015. This question was also asked by jess.n, cowesy03, Ells Bells, 955trn46, 11P SHS.
    • Photo: Columbus Flight Directors

      Columbus Flight Directors answered on 4 Oct 2015:

      Sergio:
      The easiest way to experience zero gravity is to go to the nearest amusement park and, if you are brave enough, ride on a Free Fall Tower. When you are free falling, this is exactly how zero gravity feels!
      (I and my stomach prefer to stay with my feet on the ground! 😀 )

      Unfortunately the amusement parks drop towers make you feel that only for few seconds. Astronauts fly on special airplanes called Zero-G planes that, with parabolic flights, make you feel the same feeling as in the free fall towers but for longer times, up to few minutes.

      This is the longest you can experience zero gravity without going into space. So nothing can really prepare them to what they will experience once they get to orbit. That is probably on of the most exciting feelings one can ever have!

    • Photo: Beth Healey

      Beth Healey answered on 8 Oct 2015:

      I used to fly small planes and my instructor would make our plane drop to create a zero gravity effect. It was a strange feeling and he managed to move my glove from the dash board into my lap using zero gravity in this way! This, like in amusement parks was only for a few seconds though. (My flying instructor was rather good at aerobatics too so I would often feel fairly sick after the trip!! 😉 )

      I think it must be amazing to float around in space for months!!

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