'Why isn't it...?' A glass of water at Tiangong Space Station leads to questions

A new video from China's Tiangong Space Station has conspiracy theorists convinced that the astronauts aren't actually in space. They pointed to a humble glass of water to prove their point, asking how the water inside the glass is where there is no gravity in space? In the video, as the astronauts share their experience, a glass of water can be seen sitting on a table near them.

Some users on X noted that the water was sitting perfectly well inside the glass. They asked, How is it possible? In space, where there is no gravity, everything floats around. This has led us to think that even water inside a glass should be swirling inside the space station.

"Why isn't the water floating out of the glass?" a user asked.

Another assumed that the water should be floating around, a risky thing at a space station which also houses several valuable and delicate instruments. "Call me crazy but if I was orbiting the Earth at 17,500mph in zero gravity surrounded complex computers, I probably wouldn’t risk an unconcealed glass of water resting on the table."

The user said that maybe it is stuck to the surface using Velcro.

Even if that keeps the glass stuck, what holds back the water?

This is how water behaves in space

There is nothing sinister happening in this picture, and there is a completely scientific explanation for the water.

Water likes to stay with its buddies (other water molecules) and in a safe space (the glass). He told Associated Press, "Water molecules like to stick to glass and also to other water molecules more than they like to disperse in the air."

Water consists of slightly positive hydrogen atoms and slightly negative oxygen atoms, creating a strong surface tension as they pull towards each other. This is why water stays intact and is not influenced by external forces.

Chinese astronauts often share insights from the Tiangong space station. In this particular video, they were talking to students on Earth, teaching them how buoyancy works differently in space by suspending a ping-pong ball in water.

Earlier, in one such video, they shared everything that the space station held, including astronaut beds. They also gave a peek through a window into space and what Earth looked like from up there.