Final answer:
In a rocketship accelerating at 0.5g, you would feel half your normal weight. Astronauts appear weightless in orbit due to free fall, and on the white dwarf Sirius B, you would feel much heavier due to its high gravity.
Step-by-step explanation:
If you were in a rocketship in outer space and accelerating at 0.5g, you would feel half of your normal weight. This feeling of heaviness or lightness is related to the concept of apparent weight, which changes with acceleration. For example, in an elevator that is accelerating upwards, a person would feel heavier, while in free fall, as in the case of an elevator with a cut cable, a person would feel weightless.
Astronauts in orbit appear to be weightless because they are in free fall along with the space station, such that they do not exert force on a scale. However, their actual weight, if measured with the influence of gravity alone as on Earth, would be approximately 88% of their Earth weight due to the gravitational pull at the altitude of the International Space Station.
When considering the scenario of being on a white dwarf like Sirius B, your weight would be significantly higher due to the immense gravitational force caused by the high mass of the white dwarf condensed into a small volume. So, if you wish to 'lose weight' in space, traveling to celestial bodies with lower gravitational forces than Earth would be the choice, such as the Moon or Mars, not a massive star like a white dwarf.