# Gravity Was the Problem All Along: Why Three Decades of Laser Propulsion Tests May Have Been Wrong

- slug: gravity-was-the-problem-all-along-why-three-decades-of-laser-propulsion-tests-may-have-been-wron
- date: 2026-04-15
- category: Space & Aerospace

A laser pushed on a piece of graphene foam in a lab and barely moved it. Then they did it in microgravity and the thing shot 30 times faster. The reason, researchers say: Earth’s gravity was hiding the real numbers from every lab on the planet.

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