- Even as most objects on Earth or in the earth’s gravitational field experience the gravitational pull and therefore attain the attribute of “weight”; there are some special circumstances that can give a sensation of “weightlessness”.
- Weightlessness is the phenomenon involving absolute or near-complete absence of the sensation of weight. This is also termed zero-G, although the more appropriate term will be “zero G-force”. It occurs when there are no contact forces acting upon an object, including the human body.
- Weight, as we understand, is a measure of the force on an object at rest when under the influence of a gravitational field (for example, for objects on the surface of the Earth). This “weight-sensation” can arise due to contact with supporting floors, seats, beds, scales, etc.
- A sensation of weight can also be experienced when the gravitational field is zero; for such cases, the object is under the effect of contact forces, which are acting upon it. These forces help overcome a body’s inertia (condition of rest) by some mechanical and non-gravitational influence- such as centrifugal force in a centrifuge, an orbiting space station, or within an accelerating vehicle.
- It is during these circumstances (when gravitational force experienced is zero) that a body is said to be in “free fall”. Near a black hole, tidal effects due to a non-uniform gravitational field are found to be very strong. While in the case of the Earth, the effects are only minuscule, especially on objects of relatively small dimensions (such as the human body or a spacecraft). In such instances, the weightlessness of the objects is almost always guarded. This phenomenon is referred to as microgravity and it is found to exist in all orbiting spacecraft.
- This is all about mass weight, their meanings, and differences along with the explanation of their formulas. Focus on how the formulas are derived and used to calculate the answers to the solved questions to clear your conceptual understanding of this topic.
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