Go on a zero gravity parabolic flight, also known as the ‘vomit comet’, in this 360º video from The Royal Institution. Drag the video in any direction using any modern browser or the YouTube mobile app… and, of course, see if you can spot Yoda. The European Space Agency explains a bit more about flying in a reduced gravity aircraft:
A refitted aircraft flies up and down at 45º angles – at the top of the curve the passengers and experiments experience around 20 seconds of microgravity. Before and after the weightless period increased gravity up to 2g is part of the ride.
Parabolic flights are useful for short-duration scientific and technological investigations in reduced gravity. These flights are the only way to test microgravity with humans without going through lengthy astronaut-training and flights to the International Space Station. For this reason, parabolic flights are often used to validate space instruments and train astronauts before spaceflight.
Plus, Dr. Kevin Fong explores how water behaves in microgravity as Ri Christmas Lectures assistant Jon Farrow explains:
These videos are two features in Ri’s A Place Called Space.
Watch this next: 2,000 ping pong balls and 30 middle-school teachers in Zero G.
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