By MARCIA DUNN
AP Aerospace Writer
CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. – Sir Isaac Newton’s famous apple tree is about to leave gravity behind.
Flying aboard space shuttle Atlantis next week will be a 4-inch sliver of the tree from which an apple fell nearly 350 years ago and inspired Newton to discover the law of gravity.
British-born astronaut Piers Sellers is flying the piece of wood for The Royal Society of London.