LIFE – FLOATING

You slowly roll out another long tendril and inflate the myriad of tiny air sacks. They keep you buoyant in the cool atmosphere of the gas-giant planet that you call home. As the few rays of the sun pierce through the clouds, you feel yourself rise through the clouds.

What comes to mind when you think of floating? Is it a bird sailing through the air, a school of fish zipping through the ocean, or an astronaut hovering in an airlock?

There are many ways to float. You can use aerodynamics or aquadynamics to float within a medium like air or water. Or you can float by counteracting the gravitational force by moving to a zero G or microgravity environment like a space station, or float through space itself.

What kind of shapes are best suited to float through a medium? How would you propel yourself? What strategies or technologies could you employ to float in space? Maybe you are tethered to a small moon or asteroid, or your spacecraft is hovering just at the edge of a planet’s gravitational influence.

So many options. Explore more ideas below!