I just realized it's weird that most people seem to think that zero-gravity "Vomit Comet" flights achieve free fall by diving straight down, instead of following a parabolic arc up and over like they really do. Because that's actually a thing commonly done in everyday life, when stealing a bite of something drippy from a plate across the table. You do a little bouncing motion, and then move it up and over in an arc to your own plate, trying to keep everything in freefall so the drips follow the fork and don't fall on the table on the way. It's the exact same maneuver!

Yours truly moving an experimental free-flying robot into position during a parabola on the NASA "Weightless Wonder" (AKA Vomit Comet) almost exactly 20 years ago. Everyone is bracing themselves to keep from drifting around uncontrolled. NASA employees are in blue jumpsuits, students in green.
ALT
Jul 5, 2026, 20:40 UTCen