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Topic Weightlessness
Asked 2 times across 2 UPSC exams over 45 years (1979–2024), peaking in 1979.
Key insights
- Most tested in CSE — 1 of 2 PYQs
- Most asked in 1979
- Recurs across 2 years (1979–2024)
How it travelled across exams
First appearance in each exam — the same idea, reframed.
CSE 1979 → NDA 2024
How the concept evolved
Long-running — most appearances (1 of 2) predate 2016, and it still returns.
Related concepts
Ideas UPSC tests alongside this one — keep exploring.
Sample questions
You've seen the pattern — here are a few of the actual PYQs.
NDA2024
An astronaut whose weight on the Earth is 600 N experiences weightlessness on International Space Station orbiting around the Earth. It means that
- A acceleration of the astronaut is zero
- B normal reaction of the space-station floor on the astronaut is zero ✓
- C gravitational pull of earth on the astronaut is zero
- D space station applies a centrifugal force on the astronaut
✓ Correct answer: (B)
Science & Technology › Physics & Chemistry
CSE1979
When a man circles round the earth in a satellite, then
- A His mass becomes zero but weight remains constant
- B Mass remains constant but weight becomes zero ✓
- C Both mass and weight remain constant
- D Both mass and weight remain zero
✓ Correct answer: (B)
Science & Technology › Physics & Chemistry
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