Floating students at work   To fly a parabola, the pilot makes the aeroplane climb sharply at maximum speed, and then allows it to ‘fall’, which means the thrust of the engines is levelled to precisely match the drag of aeroplane. The aeroplane is steered in such a way that the wings deliver no lift at all, so it is in a state of free fall. Everything inside the aeroplane is now weightless. About 20 seconds later, when the nose is pointing down 42 degrees, the pilot pulls it up sharply. After a short break, the whole process is repeated. During a normal parabolic flight, the pilot flies 31 parabolas. Insects, smoke and CDs     This year’s Student Parabolic Flight Campaign, organised by ESA’s Education Office, involved 32 groups of students from various universities across Europe. They were the best from over 120 teams that sent in a proposal to conduct an experiment in weightlessness. Weightlessness     ESA’s parabolic flight campaigns are carried out using an Airbus A300, operated by the French company Novospace. It is a standard passenger jet with a few modifications. The biggest difference compared to a normal aeroplane is the removal of all the seats in the mid-section. This area is covered with a soft material and serves as the experiment area. Release date: 14 August 2009