this post was submitted on 04 Jul 2023
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Nothing in space is floating, everything is almost always moving because a larger body has pulled it with it's gravity, it was ejected or it was pushed by something. The last two are obvious, but the first is so cool.
In the same vein, things in orbit can only stay in orbit if they are moving forwards faster than they are down. So technically, orbiting material is always in freefall.
Rockets work in space because, in simple terms, the rocket is pushing itself off of its own exhaust.
If you are an astronaut in space and drift away without being tethered and you are holding a tool, you could theoretically drift back to the station by throwing that tool in the opposite direction. This works like the rocket, you're pushing yourself off the tool.