Today, “Patchman” Nick V. received his prize for designing the stunningly cool patch I wore into zero-g. The prize, as advertised, was an official Zero-G Flight Suit! You read it right! A FLIGHT SUIT! Sorry to make you all jealous of Nick, but you, the people spoke and his patch won! After jumping into a phone booth he emerged looking like this:
Many people have asked how it was to experience zero-gravity. They also have asked how I feel now that I am back. To answer that question, check out the following cartoon. Thanks to Laura P. (7th grade) for drawing it!
I wanted to share some of the official photos from the flight with you. These photos capture the experience we all had on the weightless flight. I hope you enjoy them. All photos are copyright of Steve Boxall.
This picture shows the first people to board G-Force One on that lovely day. If you look closely, do you see who is first in line? – That is right! It’s me Mr. B!
After boarding G-Force One, we found our seats and prepared for takeoff. We had to have the standard (with some comical, attention-grabbing acting) safety briefing, as found on any commercial flight. The flight shortly after takeoff was quite rough due to weather, but we managed well enough. Once we reached our cruising altitude, the coaches then began to setup our experiments. They collected all of our shoes first though! Then we were allowed out of our seats and posed for the group picture seen below. This was taken somewhere over the Atlantic Ocean.
Next, came the frantic setup of experiments and even some baseline experimentation. My team sets up the mass vs. weight experiment in the photo below. Note: I will describe the experiment in more detail when I post the video of it in action.
Time quickly evaporated and we had to get into position to start the parabolas. The best part is just about to begin. The first set of parabolas (five in total) would be Martian 1, Lunar 1, Lunar 2, Zero 1 and finally Zero 2. That was quite a trip from Mars to the Moon twice and then on into zero-gravity, but it only took approximately 6-7 minutes to perform. G-Force One is fast!
The photo above shows us prepared to experience the 1.8 Gs on the way into the first parabola. We are looking up at the ceiling and focussing on one small point to limit the effects on our bodies. Get ready for Martian 1!
Martian Gravity is fun because you can do some very easy pushups! The gravity on Mars is 1/3 of the Earth’s Gravity. How much would you weigh on Mars?
I have received a scan of the patch that I plan on wearing on my flight suit next Tuesday. Don’t forget: some of you can win an actual embroidered patch. I decided I should put up the various versions of the patch so you can see if from concept to reality. Again, “Way to go Nick!”
Above: Nick’s actual drawing before computer editing.
Above: The winning patch design in all its digitized glory!
![11785_[1]](http://mrbinzerog.files.wordpress.com/2009/09/11785_1.jpg?w=293&h=300 "11785_[1]")
Above: The actual patch that I will wear and you can win!
