A yo-yo mainly relies on the laws of conservation of angular momentum to perform tricks. The basic up-and-down motion is caused by the string unwinding from the central axle, which causes the yo-yo body to spin rapidly. When it reaches the end of the string, the angular momentum of the body gives it the energy to wind the string up again, bringing the yo-yo back.
This works just as well in microgravity, providing you keep the string taut. In 2012 NASA astronaut Don Pettit took a yo-yo on board the International Space Station and demonstrated several tricks, including some he invented that actually require weightlessness.
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Asked by: Blake Houston, via email
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