Space
NASA Astronaut Karen Nyberg Uses Single Strand of Hair to Demonstrate the Effect of Weightlessness [VIDEO]
Benita Matilda
First Posted: Oct 24, 2013 04:00 AM EDT
A latest video by NASA astronaut Karen Nyberg aboard the International Space Station, depicts how a single strand of hair can be used to propel oneself in the space station's zero gravity.
With 16 sunrises and sunsets in one day, ever wondered what life is like for astronauts aboard the ISS? Trapped in a weightless environment, they constantly come up with different approaches for everyday activities; on the whole the space station life has its own ups and downs. But the astronauts have managed to give Earthlings a glimpse inside life on the space station through video uploads.
Several interesting videos have been posted by different astronauts aboard ISS. One such video by ISS crew member Karen Nyberg grabbed a lot of attention. In that she demonstrated how astronauts wash their hair in space without any running water. Another astronaut Chris Hadfield posted a video of him playing a guitar and singing David Bowie's space Oddity in zero gravity aboard ISS, which also became an internet sensation, since then he is known as the first 'rock star' in space.
The latest video by Nyberg, who is more than halfway through her six-month mission in space, describes the effect of weightlessness using a single strand of her own hair, reports Space.com.
In the video it is seen that a slight force applied with a single strand of her hair against a pole sends her falling backwards in slow motion and floating upside down.
This brief experiment was inspired by a conversation actress Sandra Bullock had with NASA astronaut Cady Coleman as she wanted tips for her movie 'Gravity'- a science fictional thriller that continues to soar at the box office.
In a follow-up interview, Bullock told Coleman, "The thing that resonated with me the most was that you said something about your hair - that you could take one strand of hair and push off the wall with that hair and it would propel you backwards."
Coleman spent five months aboard ISS from 2010-2011 and has been a veteran of three space flights. When this conversation reached the ears of Nyberg, crew member of current Expedition 37, she decided to put Coleman's assertions to test.
"Since I have the resources, I thought I would give it a try," the long-tressed Nyberg said in the Oct. 18 NASA video.
Nyberg, who is scheduled to return to Earth in November, is making the best of her time in space. Beating all odds in weightless environment she made a small toy dino using the space station's scraps that continues to float in ISS's zero gravity.
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First Posted: Oct 24, 2013 04:00 AM EDT
A latest video by NASA astronaut Karen Nyberg aboard the International Space Station, depicts how a single strand of hair can be used to propel oneself in the space station's zero gravity.
With 16 sunrises and sunsets in one day, ever wondered what life is like for astronauts aboard the ISS? Trapped in a weightless environment, they constantly come up with different approaches for everyday activities; on the whole the space station life has its own ups and downs. But the astronauts have managed to give Earthlings a glimpse inside life on the space station through video uploads.
Several interesting videos have been posted by different astronauts aboard ISS. One such video by ISS crew member Karen Nyberg grabbed a lot of attention. In that she demonstrated how astronauts wash their hair in space without any running water. Another astronaut Chris Hadfield posted a video of him playing a guitar and singing David Bowie's space Oddity in zero gravity aboard ISS, which also became an internet sensation, since then he is known as the first 'rock star' in space.
The latest video by Nyberg, who is more than halfway through her six-month mission in space, describes the effect of weightlessness using a single strand of her own hair, reports Space.com.
In the video it is seen that a slight force applied with a single strand of her hair against a pole sends her falling backwards in slow motion and floating upside down.
This brief experiment was inspired by a conversation actress Sandra Bullock had with NASA astronaut Cady Coleman as she wanted tips for her movie 'Gravity'- a science fictional thriller that continues to soar at the box office.
In a follow-up interview, Bullock told Coleman, "The thing that resonated with me the most was that you said something about your hair - that you could take one strand of hair and push off the wall with that hair and it would propel you backwards."
Coleman spent five months aboard ISS from 2010-2011 and has been a veteran of three space flights. When this conversation reached the ears of Nyberg, crew member of current Expedition 37, she decided to put Coleman's assertions to test.
"Since I have the resources, I thought I would give it a try," the long-tressed Nyberg said in the Oct. 18 NASA video.
Nyberg, who is scheduled to return to Earth in November, is making the best of her time in space. Beating all odds in weightless environment she made a small toy dino using the space station's scraps that continues to float in ISS's zero gravity.
See Now: NASA's Juno Spacecraft's Rendezvous With Jupiter's Mammoth Cyclone