Zero Gravity Flights for the Rest of Us

waynegoode writes "Zero G Corporation, whose motto is "Question Gravity", is now offering zero gravity flights to the general public. For $3000 you get training and a 90 minute ride with 15 periods of 25 seconds of low or zero-gravity: 3 1/3 Mars gravity, 3 1/6 Lunar gravity, and 9 zero gravity. Peter Diamandis, the man behind the Ansari X Prize, worked 11 years to get FAA approval. Previously, such flights were available only to astronauts, researchers, and Tom Hanks; although recently flights for the public began Russia for about twice the price. Story also here."

Comments

Vomit Comet

[iqvoice]

I'm actually sitting only 300 yards away from NASA's KC-135, affectionately known as the Vomit Comet. This is the aircraft that NASA uses to do micro-gravity research. (ie. zero-g flights with experiments in tow.) I've had the opportunity to fly on the thing but turned it down. (Yeah I'm a big chicken. A big green-in-the-face chicken in fact.)

Reckon I won't be spending $3000 to do what I could have done for free....

Re:*Ahem*

[ReadParse]

Well, I guess they should have said called it "an illusion of zero gravity, relative to the motion of the aircraft" -- which is what it really is. Sure, it's not truly zero gravity, but it's also very, very different from skydiving.

I would say that skydiving doesn't even provide a similar experience, since the key to "experience" is what your body feels like it's doing, rather than what it's actually doing. This is skydiving without seeing the ground rushing towards you and without all the wind -- which makes it VERY different.

RP

Re:*Ahem*

[AKAImBatman]

Typical. Jokes about Pornography get modded up, while trolls come around and mod down REAL INFORMATION to practically nothing.

Am I the only one who finds this idiocy disgusting? I don't even mind having my post modded down, but to mod up something so tasteless as porn in it's place? Bah.