Scientists wishing to observe processes and phenomena in a nearly weightless environment must place their experiments in a state of freefall, or microgravity. One method of creating microgravity is to drop experiments down tubes or from towers.
Scientists make measurements and use video cameras to observe the experiments as they fall.
The equation given is for calculating the distance traveled by a freefalling object where d is the distance in meters that the object has fallen, g is the acceleration due to gravity, and t is the amount of time in seconds that the object has fallen. Back to top Experiment NASA Lewis Research Center in Cleveland, Ohio, has two drop towers for conducting microgravity experiments. The Japan Microgravity Center in Hokkaido, Japan, is the home of the tallest drop tower in the world. It provides 10 seconds of freefall. In microgravity, scientists can observe everyday processes without the complicating effects of gravity.