Watch an Astronaut Get “Stuck” in Microgravity, Left Floating in Space

Astronaut Floating in Mid Air

GIF: Reddit

Astronauts go through all sorts of training to prepare for what it will be like in space. This includes experiencing microgravity, aka mirco-g. Moving around in it is challenging. If you need any idea of just how challenging, check out this short video of an astronaut who doesn't have access to handles or supports. Without something to grip onto and propel himself around, he’s momentarily stuck floating in mid-air.

Microgravity is sometimes called zero gravity, but they are not the same. Micro means very small, and so microgravity indicates, according to NASA, “the condition in which people or objects appear to be weightless.” This is what we refer to when seeing objects and people floating in space.

Just because the astronaut didn’t have an object to propel himself with doesn’t mean that he was permanently suspended, as demonstrated in the video. (Remember, there was some gravity in the room.) Breathing was one way to inch himself out of his predicament. “Relax,” one Redditor explained, “blow a big breath out. Newton's laws mean you will move. Repeat until enough momentum is gained. Or push the air around you as if you were swimming. Problem solved. This guy isn't stuck.”

Watch the mesmerizing video, below.

See how this astronaut is “stuck” in microgravity without access to handles or supports:

h/t: [Reddit]

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Sara Barnes

Sara Barnes is a Staff Editor at My Modern Met and Manager of My Modern Met Store. She is a graduate of the Maryland Institute College of Art where she earned her BFA in Illustration and MFA in Illustration Practice. Sara is also an embroidery illustrator and writer living in Seattle, Washington. She runs Bear&Bean, a studio where she stitches pet portraits and other beloved creatures. She chronicles the creativity of others through her website Brown Paper Bag and newsletter, Orts. Her latest book is Threads of Treasure: How to Make, Mend, and Find Meaning Through Thread, published in 2014. Sara’s work has been recognized in Be Creative With Workbox, Embroidery Magazine, American Illustration, on Iron and Wine’s album Beast Epic, among others. When she’s not stitching or writing, Sara enjoys planning things that bring together the craft community. She is the co-founder of Camp Craftaway, a day camp for crafty adults with hands-on workshops in the Seattle area.
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