Zephyr and Keiko are standing inside an elevator that is traveling upwards. Zephyr inflates a balloon and ties it to a string while Keiko holds an identical uninflated balloon in her hand. Suddenly, the elevator cable snaps, and the elevator begins to fall freely. What happens to the inflated balloon and the uninflated balloon during the fall?
Provide a brief response.
When the elevator cable snaps and it begins to fall freely, Zephyr, Keiko, the inflated balloon tied to a string, and the uninflated balloon in Keiko's hand will all experience free fall at the same acceleration due to gravity. In this state of free fall, they will not feel the effects of gravity on themselves because they are all accelerating downward at the same rate. As a consequence, the inflated balloon will appear to hover or float in the same position relative to Zephyr and Keiko because there is no longer an upward force from the floor of the elevator acting on the balloon through the string to keep it taut. The uninflated balloon in Keiko's hand will behave similarly, staying in place relative to her because she and the balloon are falling at the same rate. It's worth noting that the inflated balloon will not sink to the floor as it would if it had been heavier than air in a stationary environment, nor will the uninflated balloon float away from Keiko's hand unless she releases it. Even though they are in free fall, there would be no relative vertical motion between the balloons, Zephyr, Keiko, and the elevator, as they are all subject to the same gravitational acceleration.