Part Two :Shuttle Math

Free Fall!
On the Space Shuttle the gravitational status of astronauts is often describing as a "Zero-G"
environment. This implies that the force of gravity does not apply to the Shuttle in orbit. This is not
true!

Gravity is the attractive force between bodies related to their masses and distances. Every object in
the universe with mass exerts a gravitational pull on every other massive object. The more massive
the object, the stronger the gravitational attraction, and the closer the objects are to each other, the
more strongly the attraction will be felt.
Sir Isaac Newton realized that the same force that caused apples to fall from trees was responsible
for holding the Moon in orbit around Earth (and the planets around the Sun). He also realized that
as the distance grows between two objects the attraction drops, but most importantly.. it never
reaches zero!

So how does the gravity of Earth affect a spacecraft in orbit? The gravitational pull of Earth on the
Shuttle astronauts is almost exactly the same as the gravitational force holding you in chair. "But
wait", you say, "the astronauts are floating, and I'm not!"
True, the astronauts are experiencing weightlessness, but they are not experiencing a true zero-g
environment. The astronauts are experiencing weightlessness because they are in free fall. Isaac
Newton realized that gravity's effects on objects could also be described in terms of falling. Click
here to read the story of Newton and the apple.

If you threw a baseball directly towards the horizon it would travel forever if it were not being acted
upon by gravity and friction (produced by the resistance of the air molecules). Gravity causes the ball
to fall back to Earth in an arc. If you throw the ball harder it will travel farther, but will still fall in an
arc.
If you throw it really hard or launch it via a cannon, the ball could travel so far that as it arcs towards
the surface the curvature of the Earth matches the curvature of the arc.
The ball would be continually arcing towards a surface that is continually arcing out of its way. For
an interactive animated version of Newton's cannon on a mountain, click here!

The speed necessary to reach this situation is about 28,200 kilometers per hour (17,500 miles per
hour) and this is the speed that the Space Shuttle must attain to continue to fall around Earth (remain
in orbit) at an altitude of 300 kilometers (186 miles). (To go farther than that, or "escape" the Earth's
gravitational force, if you wanted to go to the moon for example, you have to go even faster than
that. The "escape velocity" for the Earth is about 40,300 kilometers per hour, or about 25,000 miles
per hour).
Therefore the shuttle astronauts are in free fall but still affected by the gravitational pull of Earth. If
Earth's gravity were to disappear, the Shuttle would fly off in a straight line!

What is the force of gravity at 220 miles above Earth's surface? Calculate how much of a g
force the astronauts are actually experiencing. The solution for this math problem is a
percentage.
You can calculate it using the Algebraic equation: gr = R2/r2 x g
R = the radius of the planet
r = the distance from the center of mass of the planet to the center of mass of the object in orbit
g = the gravitational attraction of the planet on objects on its surface
gr = the gravitational attraction of the planet as felt on the less massive object
Hints: To find the Equatorial radius of the Earth in kilometers, use
http://nssdc.gsfc.nasa.gov/planetary/factsheet/earthfact.html . The gravitational attraction of the Earth
on the surface is 1g.