Gravity is one of the greatest mysteries in science. How does it work? Although we know it exists and can see its effects science has a hard time explaining the exact mechanism. At first we thought we understood it. At least after Newton formulated his laws and we believed we had the universe figured out. But then Einstein came along and completely changed our view of the cosmos and of physics. Since then we have discovered some crazy things about quantum mechanics and how the world works on a microscopic level. Unfortunately, while Newtonian models do a good job of describing things like gravity between large objects, they don’t do very well describing forces between atoms. And while Einstein’s theory of relativity gives us insight into the microscopic world of the molecule, it doesn’t really do a good job in other areas. So it seems that we have several ways of describing the same thing but no real understanding of why or how it works. Over time, numerous theories have been put forth, and most of them have been found lacking. So, although we cannot fully describe it, gravity causes some crazy things to happen. It’s not as simple as just pulling things towards each other. Did you know that gravity affects time? These are 25 Earth shattering facts about gravity!
If you want even more cool space and science facts, check out these 25 Major Space Discoveries That Defied Our Imagination And Won.
Because of gravity, humans get the urge to pee when their bladder is about 1/3 full
Source: wikipedia, Image: wikipedia In space, astronauts don't have the urge to pee until their bladder is basically exploding
Source: realclearscience.com, Image: wikipedia Einsteins most revolutionary equation wasn't e=mc2 (unless you are designing nuclear bombs). His most important equation was G = 8 π T, which basically stated that space-time is curved and not flat
Source: maztravel.com, Image: wikipedia Humans could successfully colonize and live on planets with up to 3 times the gravity of Earth. At 4 times the gravity, however, blood flow to the brain would be impaired
Source: zidbits.com, Image: wikipedia Earth's gravitational pull makes it impossible for mountains to be taller than 15km (in theory)
Source: wikipedia, Image: wikipedia There are regions in space where gravity between the Sun and Earth (or any other two objects) interact to create something called Lagrangian points. Other objects can orbit around these points as if there were something there.
Source: wikipedia, Image: wikipedia Birds cannot be taken into space because they require gravity to swallow
Source: wikipedia, Image: wikipedia During the final Apollo 15 moonwalk, David Scott dropped both a feather and a hammer to confirm Galileo's theory that objects fall at the same speed regardless of their mass (on Earth the feather falls more slowly only because of air resistance)
Source: wikipedia, Image: wikipedia Jupiter is sometimes referred to as a failed star because although it had enough mass to pull in a significant amount of gas, it didn't gain enough to start fusion
Source: scientificamerican.com, Image: pixabay Jupiter's gravity will eventually either push Mercury out of the Solar System or send it crashing into the Sun
Source: universetoday.com, Image: pixabay If the Sun were to all of a sudden disappear, we would still see it and experience its gravitational pull for about another 8 minutes
Source: csa.com, Image: wikipedia Due to gravity on a neutron star, the tallest "mountain" can only be a measly 5mm.
Source: daviddarling.info, Image: wikipedia Liquid helium has no viscosity and it can flow up walls against gravity
Source: bbc, Image: wikipedia As we said before, were the Sun to disappear, we would experience both the gravitational and visible effects at the same time. In this same way, we actually continue to experience gravity from stars that are long gone
Source: wikipedia, Image: wikipedia The Gravity Research Foundation has devoted itself to fighting gravity and since 1948 people have even sat upside down at meetings to show their defiance
Source: wideworldofwiki.wordpress.com, Image: wikipedia A pendulum clock that is accurate at sea level loses about 16 seconds every day if it is moved to an altitude of 4,000 feet.
Source: people.timezone.com, Image: emi moriya via Flickr The weightless scenes in the movie Apollo 13 were filmed over the course of 612 parabola flights. These are flights where a plane repeatedly climbs and then nose dives to simulate zero gravity
Source: wikipedia, Image: wikipedia On Titan, one of Saturn's moons, the atmosphere is so thick that people could fly by flapping large "wings" with their arms
Source: wikipedia, Image: wikipedia During a nuclear test in the 1950s known as Pascal B, a 2,000 pound steel plate was launched into the atmosphere at 6 times Earth's escape velocity (the speed required to escape Earth's gravity). Although it was never found, scientists have stated that if it didn't burn up in the atmosphere, this would have been the first man made object to leave the Earth.
Source: wikipedia, Image: wikipedia Food doesn't taste the same in space because a lack of gravity causes astronaut's sinuses to clog up
Source: theatlantic.com, Image: pixabay If you are melting glass in space, the lack of gravity would increase viscosity which would allow you to create glass out of chemicals other than silica
Source: nasa.gov, Image: wikipedia Without gravity, the flame of a candle is round and blue
Source: wikipedia, Image: wikipedia The area surrounding Hudson Bay has lower gravity than elsewhere on Earth. This is because during the last ice age the ice sheets pressed the Earth down, displacing a significant amount of mass. Because the Earth has less mass there, gravity is decreased.
Source: wikipedia, Image: wikipedia Astronauts don't consume sodas or carbonated drinks because the lack of gravity prevents the separation of liquid and gas in the stomach. This causes a type of vomiting known as wet burping.
Source: wikipedia, Image: wikipedia Neutron stars can bend light so much that from some vantage points you can see their entire surface (even though they are spherical!)
Source: nasa, Image: wikipedia Lists Going Viral Right Now
