Newton's First Law of Motion

There are no forces acting on it.

Its inertia keeps it at rest until an unbalanced force acts on it.

Gravity and friction cancel each other out completely.

The shuttle has no mass before ignition.

Its inertia suddenly disappears.

The unbalanced thrust from the engines overcomes its inertia.

Gravity pulls the shuttle upward.

The air beneath the shuttle pushes it up on its own.

The shuttle’s inertia increases with height.

The thrust remains balanced by gravity allowing for a constant speed.

The unbalanced force (thrust minus gravity) causes its motion to change.

It no longer has inertia once it leaves Earth’s surface.

There are no forces in space.

Inertia keeps it moving unless another force acts on it.

Gravity no longer affects it.

Its mass has decreased to zero.