News Physics

Free-falling atoms in space put a new twist on Galileo’s gravity test

A test on a space station reaffirms a core part of Einstein's general theory of relativity

A rendering of a space station with modules and solar panels

Two clouds of atoms on China’s Tiangong space station (rendering shown) fell with the same acceleration in a new experiment.

Adrian Mann/Stocktrek Image/Alamy

By Emily Conover

An experiment made famous by Galileo has been shrunk down to the atomic level and shipped off to space.