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A lot of kids dream of becoming an astronaut
some day and experiencing zero gravity in space. This
weekend, that childhood dream came true for nearly 50 math
and science teachers from Colorado Springs. They flew in
what is known as parabolic flight, which creates short
periods of weightlessness.
"It's a very Zen-like experience because
you're weightless," said Phillip Clark of the Zero G
Corporation, which is the only company licensed by the FAA
to perform parabolic flight.
For the first time in their lives, these
teachers flew like astronauts.
"You're flying! And there's nothing to hold
you down," said teacher
Ingrid Daniel. "It's
amazing,"
There are only about five jets in the world
that do parabolic flight. Here's how it works: the jet
quickly drops and then climbs over a 100 mile stretch of air
space and when it crests, it creates a zero gravity
environment.
"Parabolic Flight is the only way to
experience zero gravity on earth, otherwise you would have
to go into space," said Clark.
The Northrop Grumman Foundation footed the
bill for the teachers. In Zero-G, they saw the impossible on
earth, become possible. They were able to do push-ups with
two people on their back--even drinking water out of the
air. It's a thrill only a few thousand people have
experienced without leaving the earth's atmosphere.
"It's freedom. You don't have anything
tethering you. You're just flying," said Daniel.
The teachers brought science experiments on
board. They plan to share the results with their
students. It's all part of a plan to inspire young people.
"Something like this is going to impart on
them lessons that they can take to the classroom and help
inspire the next generation of explorers, scientists and
hopefully teachers," said Tom Henson of Northrop Grumman.
"One of my biggest dreams is to have some
student come up to me someday, years in the future, and say
I went to space or I did this because of you. That would be
fantastic," said Daniel.
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