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Q:
What is meant by weightlessness?
A:
Weightlessness is when a person feels as if they weigh nothing at all. On Earth, gravity acts on all objects with a force of 9.8 meters (32 feet) per second squared. On different planets, the same object will weigh less. For example, on the moon gravity only exerts 1.6 meters (5.25 feet) per second squared on a person, so they weigh less. If an object is far enough away from massive objects like planets or moons, gravity will have such a small effect that we cannot observe it. We call this microgravity. When a person is in a microgravity environment, they feel weightless.
Posted on October 10, 2012 at 8:30 am
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