So far, 2017 hasn’t exactly been a great year, but if you look hard enough, you’ll find the world is still filled with wonderful things. In August, eight children living with disabilities were given a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to experience zero gravity. Before watching, you’ll probably want to reach for a tissue.
The experience was made possible by the European Space Agency, and Novespace, a subsidiary of CNES which is France’s version of NASA. The kids, joined by astronauts from the UK, France, Germany, Belgium, and Italy, rode a converted Airbus A310 which flew in repeated parabolic arcs to simulate the effects of zero-gravity without having to visit space.
In addition to simply floating, which itself must be an amazing feeling and experience, the kids and the astronauts performed various experiments, including lighting candles to see what a flame does in zero-G, and playing ping-pong with water drops.