"Spinning Earth" theorists, nutters or onto something?

[Eric Mc]

tvrolet said:

Well I for one mucked about a bit, but not so much as stop me getting a good number of Highers (as they have in Scotland) and a decent engineering degree.

Let me explain it slowly. I'll try not to use any big words this time like 'geostationery'. Maybe that threw you a little?

Clearly you accept that the earth rotates along with everything on it. Therefore our view of the universe is from a constantly moving platform which we perceive as the sun and moon rising and setting and the stars apparently in motion across the sky.

While Concorde did a few trips where they flew round the globe to give maximum duration to certain phenomena, for most folks it is not possible to stay at effectively a fixed point and watch a static sun etc., as above not withstanding we're orbiting it.

But approximately 15 miles from either pole is would be possible to effectively counteract the earth's rotation at walking pace thus the view of the sun/stars would effectively be from a 'fixed' point and not from a rotating surface. Much further and you wouldn't be walking fast enough. Closer would work, but the idea of walking pace exactly matching the earth's rotation is quite elegant.

It really isn't a difficult concept.

Maybe more time in the geometry and applied mechanics classes at your school would have helped you out?

You may be an engineering and mathematical genius - but it was your convoluted English that threw me.
Still, no one is good at everything.

I understand your second post better.

[PugwasHDJ80]

tvrolet said:

On a broadly unrelated note, I've always liked the idea of being able to walk 'stationary in space' (notwithstanding the earth's orbit round the sun) - the very opposite of geostationery.

If I assume I can walk at 4mph, then I could cover 96 miles in a 24 hour period (if I was up to it), so round about 15 miles from either the north or south pole (where the diameter would be 96 miles or so) you could walk round 'stationary' in space while the earth revolves beneath you...constantly at the same time of day with just the dates changing each time you passed the date-line.

Physics/Astronomy question

Even ignoring the earths orbit of our star, you still wouldn't be still would you- the milky way is rotating, and moving away from everything else.

Is it conceptually possible to work out what stationary actually is on a universal basis?

[scorp]

PugwasHDJ80 said:

Physics/Astronomy question

Even ignoring the earths orbit of our star, you still wouldn't be still would you- the milky way is rotating, and moving away from everything else.

Is it conceptually possible to work out what stationary actually is on a universal basis?

I suppose if you know were the epicentre of the big bang was and (somehow) make measurements relative to that point then yes.

[Vaud]

scorp said:

I suppose if you know were the epicentre of the big bang was and (somehow) make measurements relative to that point then yes.

I think you are into a very complex world of relativity.

http://www.astro.ucla.edu/~wright/nocenter.html

[scorp]

Vaud said:

I think you are into a very complex world of relativity.

http://www.astro.ucla.edu/~wright/nocenter.html

What if i (hypothetically) knew were the edges were ?

[Vaud]

scorp said:

What if i (hypothetically) knew were the edges were ?

You get a free trip to Sweden...

[Ozone]

FredClogs said:

It is spinning, but not as fast as it used to,

Hang on, I thought Clarkson said the C63 Mercs had earth stopping amounts of torque. Surely it's those cars pulling away at the lights causing the slowing...

[GadgeS3C]

Ozone said:

Hang on, I thought Clarkson said the C63 Mercs had earth stopping amounts of torque. Surely it's those cars pulling away at the lights causing the slowing...

Depends which way the road is pointing?

[SpeckledJim]

Iklwa said:

Saw something the other day that some scientist recon the Earth is spinning at 1675KM/h. Now I don't know about you, but I think I'd notice if I was doing that sort of speed, but as usual the news is willing to report the "findings" of these fruitcakes.

So I want to break this down. I stand on something moving at 1675KM/h, and hold up a speed recording device. In theory, it should indicate the speed of the spinning planet, yet speed shows as 0. So what is happening? how come the completely inert gasses like the air we breath move at exactly the same speed as the solid spinning object? If I spin a car wheel, the air around it doesn't start spinning, or at least not at the same speed, so in theory, we should look up at the clouds and they should be moving away from us at something over 1000KM/h? Birds would need to fly at 1700KM/h to make any progress when flying with the spinning, and apply some serious braking if flying against it.

They say we don't notice it because of momentum? Well, if I put an ant onto a massive spinning ball, it sure notices it spinning, and would struggle to get around (I think, I don't have anything big enough to test this with), so surely we would feel the movement, and also wouldn't we feel sick? Babies would be born, and be all "whoa, what the hell, feels like we're spinning at 1675km's/h!! Im all over the place, think Im going to be sick!!" but somehow we can all walk and act normally, at 1675km/h!!?? Not possible, surely?

I can't figure it out, maybe we are spinning, but sounds like (as they do with most things) they've over exaggerated the speed, we're probably doing a few KM/h, and are able to balance well enough, though that still wouldn't explain why it takes just as long to hop in one direction than another, as the Earths spinning should facilitate a faster hoping speed when going the opposite way to it's spin? Maybe it's all gravity, but that's based on an apple falling on someones head, and even with gravity, a spin that fast should show some anomalies? Not just be completely normal because of a constant force like gravity?

Harry, have you received a modern comprehensive education?

Did you keep the receipt?

[tonyvid]

OP - that spider that lives in your door mirror, when your car is traveling at 70mph how fast is the spider going a) relative to the road and b)relative to the little house it has behind the glass?

[contractor]

PugwasHDJ80 said:

Physics/Astronomy question

Even ignoring the earths orbit of our star, you still wouldn't be still would you- the milky way is rotating, and moving away from everything else.

Is it conceptually possible to work out what stationary actually is on a universal basis?

no (not with our current understanding), hence being called the theory of relativity and space and time actually being one and the same thing (called spacetime)

[abbotsmike]

It's the easter holidays. That explains the OP, right?

[Ozone]

GadgeS3C said:

Ozone said:

Hang on, I thought Clarkson said the C63 Mercs had earth stopping amounts of torque. Surely it's those cars pulling away at the lights causing the slowing...

Depends which way the road is pointing?

Or if the car is in reverse gear!

[RizzoTheRat]

I very much doubt that, if it gives any reading at all it will be way out as you'll be a long way outside of its calibrated range

[Eric Mc]

RizzoTheRat said:

I very much doubt that, if it gives any reading at all it will be way out as you'll be a long way outside of its calibrated range

Knowing the speed at which some trolly dollies whizz through the carriage, she'd probably get a speeding ticket.

[Monty Zoomer]

If the Earth was spinning we'd fall over

[Snowboy]

Jabbah said:

Well you aren't actually travelling at that speed, unless you are on the equator. The closer to the poles you get the slower you are travelling around the axis of the earth's rotation until you are just spinning around on the spot.

This is true.
And it means that if anyone ever builds a teleprter that anyone teleporting from London to Scotland better hope to arrive in a large well padded room.

[aw51 121565]

Monty Zoomer said:

If the Earth was spinning we'd fall over

- but only if we weren't already on the spinning earth and moving at the same speed as the bit(s) of the surface of the earth which we are in contact with (assuming that we are sat or stood still and not walking about or in/on a moving vehicle etc )...

[Iklwa]

I tried, I read the responses, I thought long and hard about it, but no! it doesn't work. I thought "it's like being in car tyre, the air in the tyre spins at the same speed as the wheel", but we'd fly off, how can gravity exactly counteract the spinning forces that are so huge?

Maybe Im wrong, but it's like you are all some sort of brainwashed mass out to try and convince me (us?) that Im/we are wrong, like the computer guy in the Matrix "sure, this is the real world, and it spins really fast and a giant ball of gas in the sky doesn't just explode in one giant explosion because, well, it doesnt, and the gravity makes us stick to something doing over 1000KM/h, yet we don't feel any consequence of this whatsoever". You guys, whatever and whoever you are, you wont change my mind, you wont silence me, I am the start of the non spinning world revolution, and I will free others, and together we'll overthrow this ridiculous train of thought.

[matthias73]

This thread has made my week

anyway to business:

If I were to jump really high whilst standing next to a pond, would the earth's spinning position the pond beneath my feet whilst I was in the air?