Apparent Weightlessness Does Not Mean No Gravity
Incorrect Thinking
Students may say that an object in free fall or orbit has no weight because it feels weightless.
Why Students Think This
Everyday experience associates weight with the normal contact force felt from a support surface.
Correction
Weight is the gravitational force . Apparent weight is linked to the contact force. In free fall, gravity still acts, but the normal contact force can be zero.
Links
- Related: dynamics