Because when in the falling elevator, if you tried to weigh and object, it would not weigh anything.
Yes, exactly. A useful way to think of an object in orbit is that it is falling towards Earth much like anything else but, because of its velocity and distance from earth, it keeps missing the ground. This seems slightly contradictory -- a weightless object under the pull of gravity -- but it isn't, really. Suppose you're in an elevator that's had its cables cut. (Heaven, forefend!). Gravity accelerates you and the elevator Earthward at exactly the same rate, so you feel like you're floating relative to the elevator, but you and the elevator are just falling at the same rate.
No, you have a feeling of weightlessness, but you technically aren't floating you are just falling inside the falling elevator. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z42cGD1CXes
gravity
potential energyGravity.
Air resistance
The astronaut, space ship and everything in it are all falling at the same speed (falling around the Earth is called ORBIT). If everything is falling at the same speed, they are effectively weightless. Its like falling in an elevator, if everything is falling at the same speed you will appear to be floating around the elevator. Until it reaches the basement.
Yes, exactly. A useful way to think of an object in orbit is that it is falling towards Earth much like anything else but, because of its velocity and distance from earth, it keeps missing the ground. This seems slightly contradictory -- a weightless object under the pull of gravity -- but it isn't, really. Suppose you're in an elevator that's had its cables cut. (Heaven, forefend!). Gravity accelerates you and the elevator Earthward at exactly the same rate, so you feel like you're floating relative to the elevator, but you and the elevator are just falling at the same rate.
Its not a questions of height or altitude. Its about things free falling. A space ship falling around the Earth (everything in the space ship is also falling at the same speed) the astronauts are falling too. If you put a scale on the floor and an astronaut stepped on it, there is no downward force so it looks like they are weightless. Picture yourself in an elevator at the top floor. You're standing on a scale. Gravity pulls you and the scale, but the elevator floor prevent you from falling. The scale will measure your weight. If the elevator suddenly fell, it, you and the scale would all be accelerating towards the basement at 9.8m/s/s. The scale would read ZERO, because there is no force acting on the scale.
yes
No, you have a feeling of weightlessness, but you technically aren't floating you are just falling inside the falling elevator. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z42cGD1CXes
They actually are weightless, due to the fact there is no gravity in space. However a sky-diver would say he/she feels weightless, but they are experiencing free-fall.
-- weightless -- falling -- nausea -- loneliness -- isolation -- insignificant in size
because of the gravity
The astronauts appear to be weightless as they are in a constant freefall, falling at the same speed as the space vehicle they are on. They are 'falling' but due to their angular speed, they are 'falling' around the earth, so don't crash into it. They still have their mass, but you can't really weigh the astronauts as any scales you try to use will read zero as the scales will also be 'falling' at the same rate.
-- weightless -- falling -- nausea -- loneliness -- isolation -- insignificant in size
gravity
Because everything is in free fall, traveling at the same speed: the space station, the person & everything else. Its the same thing as being in a falling elevator. The elevator is falling at the same speed as the person. If there was a scale in that falling elevator, the person would be weightless. Unlike the satellite which can fall around the earth for many, many years, the elevator ride to the basement will not last long. It the same as being on an airplane that suddenly dives at the same acceleration as gravity (9.8m/s/s). You, the plane, and everything in the plane is falling at the same rate. If there was a scale there, you would weigh nothing, until the plane pulled out of its dive. Knowing the acceleration of gravity on the moon, Mars etc..., can be recreated in such a plane. They only need to dive at such an acceleration that it cancels the right amount of Earth's gravity. So the Moon's gravity is 1/6th that of Earth, or, things fall at 1.6m/s/s. So the plane would only dive to remove 8.2m/s/s of Earth's gravity, leaving 1.6m/s/s. The same can be done for simulating Mars' gravity, etc.... This allows Moon walkers to practice walking techniques while wearing their spacesuits. Its almost the same as being in a roller coaster going down a big hill. The cart, seat and you are all falling at the same speed, you feel ~weightless (briefly).