Why do astronauts no disappear into the distance when they release their hold on their space craft (like the ISS) which is travelling at incredible speeds through space?

Question

There is no air resistance, I get that. And the space craft/ISS is in orbit, I *kind* of get that. But if astronauts still experience acceleration in space, why do they not experience deceleration when they are no longer getting “pulled” by their vehicle?

BONUS QUESTION: at what point does acceleration forces stop? A space ship accelerates in space, all crew are pushed back into their seats, but when does that feeling dissipate if they remain at that new speed?

In: Physics

Answer 1

You are standing on a bus, the bust departs.

You feel the acceleration and you have to grab something to not lose balance. As soon as the bus is going at a fix speed, you can stand and balance on one foot if you want.

Acceleration is a change of speed or a change of direction(turn), if you have fix speed and not turning, you experience a balance, and no force is felt onto you.

For the astronauts; once the rocket engine is shut town, they are “on the bus” that is tiding at fix speed. Even if you step outside the ship, you still travel the space with it.