Why is it impossible to defy gravity? The force known as gravity is responsible for keeping humans from floating away into the void of space.
Even the most courageous daredevils would be helpless against such a formidable force.
They can try to leap, bounce, or even fly, but in the end they will always fall to the ground.
You may think defying the laws of gravity will become a possibility at some time, but experts believe the opposite. But, why is it impossible?
Gravity is an unavoidable law of nature that always pulls things together with a strength directly related to their masses.
Enter the World of Fascinating Gravity
Gravity! None of us can avoid it.
Ever dropped something, stumbled and fallen, or merely stood there while the Earth moved and you did not go flying off?
Well, you have experienced gravity! Just how does this thing work?
You, and everything else, are being drawn downward by the Earth’s gravity. Without it, we would be free to sail off into the void.
Fact: While gravity can bind galaxies together, it is so weak that you routinely outsmart it in your daily life.
More about Earth’s Gravitational Force
Any two masses in the cosmos exert a force on one another called gravity.
The force is most readily experienced as the gravitational pull that keeps us anchored to the ground beneath our feet.
Although astronauts in space will not feel its pull, gravity is still very much there.
A spaceship’s free-falling motion as it orbits the Earth only disguises the force of gravity.
Gravity can only be truly overcome by traveling to outer space, far from the influence of any stars or planets.
Is Gravity only Present on Earth?
Nope! As the pulling force between two masses, gravity is not limited to the interactions between Earth and other bodies.
The presence of mass results in a gravitational attraction. Gravity gives you heft, yet mass is constant no matter where you move.
It means that a heavier object has a stronger gravitational attraction because of its greater mass.
The astronaut’s mass remains constant at 120 kg regardless of whether he is on the moon or the earth, but his weight does alter due to the different gravitational pulls.
Why Is It Impossible to Defy Gravity?
There is currently no way to counteract gravity with technology. No matter where you go, you just cannot escape the Earth’s gravitational pull.
Some Examples of Efforts to Beat Gravity
To get close to the sensation of weightlessness on Earth, you should take a flight in a plane that makes parabolic arcs in the shape of the Gateway Arch in St. Louis.
Passengers on these planes, known as “vomit comets” due to nausea they create, get to float for a few seconds while it is in free fall on the downward swing of the arc.
This technique is used by astronauts to prepare for spaceflight and provides us with glimpses of a weightless Tom Hanks in the movie Apollo 13.
Feelings of weightlessness are another common phenomenon on roller coasters and rides like Disney World’s Tower of Terror.
Experts believe that you and your rollercoaster carriage are dropping at the same velocity, so you do not feel any pressure from your seat.
This is what it would be like if you unexpectedly found yourself on a roller coaster in outer space.
Can You Defy Gravity by Balance or Levitation?
While we are close to Earth, we are unable to evade the effects of gravity.
Nevertheless, diamagnetism allows for the levitation of tiny objects.
Strong diamagnetism describes the tendency of superconductors to be repelled from high field regions when magnetized.
That is why it is possible to levitate a superconductor. Yet humans are not diamagnetic, or at least not diamagnetic enough to levitate.
The fact that our bodies are so big also hurts since it slows down the rate at which the field strength can change over that area.
Fact: It has been found that very powerful magnets can levitate little frogs because they are diamagnetic.
Reasons Why You Cannot Defy Gravity
One of nature’s primary forces, gravity is always there, unseen but felt just the same.
It keeps humans from flying through the air and causes objects to land where they were dropped.
Gravity is responsible for forming planets, stars, and galaxies, as well as the elliptical orbits of the Earth and Moon.
Even though scientists and engineers have developed clever methods to counteract its effects, gravity remains an impassable barrier.
There are actually several factors that make defying gravity so challenging.
For instance:
The Nature of Gravity
You cannot defy it because of the nature of gravity. Gravity is one of the four fundamental forces at work in the universe along with:
- The strong nuclear force
- Electromagnetism
- The weak nuclear force
Gravity, the attraction force between two masses, was first described by Sir Isaac Newton and later refined by Albert Einstein in his theory of general relativity.
It explains that an object’s gravitational attraction is proportional to its mass.
The force between two things is also greater the closer they are to one another.
Every mass in the universe affects every other mass through gravitational attraction, which is why you cannot defy gravity.
Fact: the electric force between a proton and an electron is about one quintillion times stronger than the gravitational pull between them.
Gravity As a Fundamental Force
Gravity, as a fundamental force, is essential to our understanding of the cosmos. Its effects cannot be canceled or reversed.
Gravity is always there when other forces, like friction, can be mitigated or eliminated with tools like lubricants and air cushions.
As long as there is matter in the universe, gravity will act upon it.
The Curve of Spacetime
The theory of general relativity proposed by Albert Einstein updates our knowledge of gravity.
This hypothesis proposes that mass-induced spacetime curvature is the root source of gravity.
It means that when passing close to a massive object, like the Earth, other nearby objects will also curve their courses because of the warping of spacetime.
The force we perceive as gravity is a result of this curvature.
To defy gravity, one would have to change the curvature of spacetime, which is currently impossible for humans to accomplish.
The Limitations of Anti-Gravity Research
Scientists and engineers have worked on the idea of anti-gravity for decades, trying to create devices that can cancel out or mitigate gravity’s effects.
Despite the efforts of scientists, no practical anti-gravity device has yet been developed.
Doing so would require tinkering with fundamental forces and spacetime in unfathomable ways.
Therefore, the modern scientific consensus is that it is impossible to build a technology that can completely cancel out or nullify the effects of gravity.
Is There a Way to Defy Gravity on Earth?
There is no way to completely escape Earth’s gravitational pull, although people have found ways to mitigate its effects in a number of situations.
These techniques do not eliminate gravity, but they can make it seem like we are not subject to it, or even let us momentarily triumph over it.
Here are a few illustrations:
Aerodynamics and Lift
Lift is created by controlling the airflow over an aircraft’s wings or rotors, and is used to resist the pull of gravity.
Because of this, they are able to get airborne and stay in the air.
The concepts of aerodynamics and lift are also utilized by birds and other flying organisms.
Thrust
Rockets use the action-and-reaction principle to generate thrust, which lifts them into the air.
With every action, there is an equal and opposite response, as stated by Newton’s third law of motion.
Rockets generate a force opposite to gravity by venting exhaust gases at high velocities.
Buoyancy
Buoyancy is used to overcome the effects of gravity in submarines and hot air balloons.
Submarines are able to rise or sink in the sea because of the ability to alter the amount of water in their ballast tanks.
Yet, hot air balloons are able to rise because the air inside the balloon expands when heated, making it less dense than the air around it.
Magnetic Levitation
Maglev trains and some experimental installations employ magnetic levitation to create the illusion that they are not constrained by gravity.
The train is able to float above the track and move with minimum resistance thanks to the repulsive forces generated by powerful electromagnets.
Small items are also levitated with the help of magnetic fields in several scientific investigations.
An Important Consideration
It should be emphasized that none of these techniques actually erase or defy gravity; rather, they mitigate or work around its effects for certain applications.
Fact: A space traveler will feel around 90% of the gravity they would on Earth.
Takeaway
Why is it impossible to defy gravity?
True defiance of gravity would require tinkering with fundamental forces and spacetime, which is outside of our scientific and technological capabilities.
Aerodynamics, lift, propulsion, buoyancy, and magnetic levitation are all temporary solutions to overcoming the effects of gravity.
In reality, it is just not possible to defy gravity!
