Because space is so large, it takes you from hours to years of falling through space until you actually hit the surface of a planet (assuming you have aimed properly so that you actually do hit), instead of the seconds it takes jumping off a bridge. Because space is relatively empty, there is little air to feel whooshing past you as you fall and there are no landmarks to indicate you are moving. When you jump off a bridge, you know you are falling because you feel the air whooshing up, see the mountains shooting up, see the water fast approaching, and then feel yourself hit the water. There are two reasons that objects seem to be floating without gravity in space when they are really falling.įirst, space is very large and relatively empty by earth standards. Because gravity is everywhere in space, objects in space are always falling: towards the earth, towards the sun, and towards the galactic center. Only then can you neglect earth's gravity. When you get very close to some other large body the moon, Mars, or the sun its gravity dominates over that of the earth. But it dies off quite slowly (compared to nuclear forces). It is true that as you get farther from the earth, its gravitational pull weakens. Public Domain Image, source: Christopher S. This image is an artisitic rendition of our galaxy. Even if you managed to get away from our sun, you would still experience the galaxy's gravity. Each galaxy is held together by strong gravitational forces.
0 kommentar(er)
