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| Science & Technology |
| Boomerangs come back in space, Japanese astronaut finds |
| 2008-03-23 |
| How much more localized can one get than the International Space Station, after all? Japanese astronaut Takao Doi has thrown a boomerang in space and found, to the surprise of many, that it does come back. Doi tested the boomerang in an American experimental module on the ISS, using a paper boomerang made by world boomerang-throwing champion Yasuhiro Togai. It was not immediately clear how the boomerang actually flew, but a photograph suggested that Doi had thrown it vertically, and it had returned to his hand. "It flew just like on Earth," Doi said. It had been thought that gravity was necessary for a boomerang to return, and many people had expected that the boomerang would fly upwards if it was released in space. |
| Posted by:trailing wife |
| #8 I agree with the gyroscopic effect causing the return. The effect of air would be for lift, which in this case is unnecessary. It would be great for a physics class if they could measure the route of the boomerang in vacuum and zero gravity, compared to that of one on Earth. |
| Posted by: Anonymoose 2008-03-23 22:57 |
| #7 thrown it vertically A somewhat unfortunate phrase. When you launch a boomerang (horizontally), the boomerang is thrown so it rotates in a vertical plane. (Slightly off vertical actually, so the lift from the rotating arms helps keep it in the air longer) The 'upper' arm is advancing into the wind so it has greater airspeed and generates more force than the retreating arm. Due to one of the quirks of rotating body physics, a force applied to a rotating body like a gyroscope, bicycle wheel or boomerang appears 90 degrees later. The net effect, for a right-hander, is that the boomerang curves to the left and circles back to the thrower. Non-returning boomerangs used for hunting and Hopi throwing sticks are launched in a more horizontal plane. They are not intended to return but use the lift to stay in the air longer, increasing the range. |
| Posted by: SteveS 2008-03-23 13:05 |
| #6 "a photograph suggested that Doi had thrown it vertically, and it had returned to his hand" This just in: Laws of Gravity still work. Film at 11. |
| Posted by: Barbara Skolaut 2008-03-23 12:09 |
| #5 Unless you are on the space station in which case it it is the space station keeping the air in one place. |
| Posted by: Excalibur 2008-03-23 09:14 |
| #4 I suppose gravity is a necessity in that it keeps all the air in one place. |
| Posted by: gorb 2008-03-23 05:13 |
| #3 Microgravity, or "Zero-G" would have been the accurate headline. |
| Posted by: OldSpook 2008-03-23 01:39 |
| #2 Clearly neither the reporter nor I knew that, Scooter. ;-) Thanks for the explanation. |
| Posted by: trailing wife 2008-03-23 00:54 |
| #1 Somewhat deceptive headline. Boomerangs operate as rotating wings, which require airflow and thus an atmosphere. So in the vacuum of space they most definitely would NOT return, but inside a space station it flies as on earth. |
| Posted by: Scooter McGruder 2008-03-23 00:35 |