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Why do astronauts in space appear weightless while still affected by gravity?
Updated: 11-Apr-2025

Astronauts are in continuous free fall toward Earth, creating a sensation of weightlessness. Gravity still acts on them, keeping them in orbit, but since the spacecraft and astronauts fall at the same rate, there's no contact force pushing up against them (like the ground does on Earth).

This matches Newton’s First Law: they continue in motion unless acted upon. Their apparent weightlessness is due to orbital motion, not absence of gravity

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