Flat Earthers have travelled to Antarctica[1] and even attempted to fly to space in homemade rockets[2] in their quest to prove the world is really a flat disc.
But you don’t need to go anywhere near as far to prove that they are wrong.
As one citizen scientist recently showed, you can prove that the world is round without leaving the comfort of your own home.
All you need is a security camera, a garage, and some time to pull off this elegant experiment yourself.
A time-lapse video shared to Reddit[3] shows how a shadow cast by the garage moves throughout the year.
By recording where the edge of the shadow falls at the same time every day, the video shows that the sun’s passage actually traces a figure of eight pattern.
Scientists call this shape an ‘analemma’, and it is a fantastically clear way of demonstrating that we really do live on a round ball orbiting the sun.
On social media, science fans have praised this brilliant experiment, with one writing: ‘I’m a physics student. This is simply one more piece of evidence that agrees with our models of the solar system.’
The sun, a garage, and a security camera are all you need to prove that the Earth is round, as this simple experiment elegantly demonstrates
On a flat Earth orbited by the sun, the shadows would remain in the same place all year round, something which can easily be proven false (stock image)
If you recorded the position of the sun in the sky at the exact same time every day for a year, you would see that it traces a similar figure of eight.
This analemma pattern is what causes the shadows on the ground to trace the distinctive lines seen in this video.
Analemmas occur because the Earth is moving in an elliptical, or slightly oval, orbit around the sun.
Earth’s elliptical orbit means that the sun will appear further to the East or West at the same time of day, depending on the time of year.
Although it is often claimed that the shape of the orbit alone causes the analemma to appear, the Earth’s tilt also plays an important role.
Even if Earth’s orbit were perfectly round, the sun would still appear to move in a figure of eight because the Earth is tilted on its axis by 23.5°.
That causes the sun to appear higher or lower in the sky at the same time of day, depending on the time of the year.
In a blog post, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration explains: ‘If the Earth’s orbit were circular and the equator was perfectly in line with the orbit around the Sun, then the Sun would appear exactly in the same location in the sky each day at noon.
If you record the sun’s location at the same time each day, it will trace a figure of eight pattern known as an analemma (pictured). This means that shadows also move in a figure-eight pattern throughout the year
‘However, the Earth’s rotation is slightly inclined relative to the orbit around the Sun, and the path around the Sun is elliptical.’
On a flat Earth, with the sun moving overhead, the shadows would always be in the same place.
Since we are on a ball spinning on a tilted axis as we move around the sun, shadows on Earth also trace analemmas.
Strictly speaking, this experiment doesn’t actually prove that the world is round, but rather shows that we are on a tilted axis orbiting the sun.
However, what is important is that the evidence of analemmas is compatible with the round Earth model and not with the flat Earth model.
One commenter wrote: ‘It is, however, evidence consistent with the hypothesis that the Earth is round, a hypothesis with so many other such pieces of evidence that it becomes laughable to ignore them all[4].’
Another wrote: ‘Fantastic proof of our elliptical orbit and axis of rotation.’
Critically, since these figure-eight patterns fit with the round Earth model, we can also make predictions about how they should behave and check if that holds true.
For example, if we are on a round planet, time lapses of shadows taken at the same time of day would trace different shapes depending on where we are on Earth.
That means someone in the USA would see a different pattern from the one observed by someone in the UK.
To check for yourself, you could conduct the same experiment shown in the video and compare the resulting shapes.
If the shape traced by shadows where you live is different, then the world must be round.
Read More
Are you a Flat Earther? You’re probably INSECURE, scientists say
However, not everyone was so sure that flat Earthers could be convinced by these experiments.
One commenter on Reddit complained: ‘You can prove the earth isn’t flat by looking out of the window and not seeing Everest. Proof isn’t going to change their minds.’
‘It is, however, impossible to argue against a flat earther using this because even they don’t know wtf is going on in their model,’ another chimed in.
While one commenter joked: ‘Someone wilfully embracing a stupid idea isn’t going to abandon it because of some elegant geometry.’
WHAT IS FLAT EARTH THEORY?[5]
Those who believe the Flat Earth Theory claim our planet is shaped like a flat disc instead of a sphere.
Because Earth’s surface looks and feels flat when we walk around it, the conspiracy theorists denounce all evidence to the contrary.
The leading theory suggests Earth is a disc with the Arctic Circle in the centre and Antarctica, a 150-foot-tall (45-metre) wall of ice, around the rim.
Those who believed the Flat Earth Theory claim our planet is shaped like a flat disc instead of a sphere. Pictured is a model presented to attendees at the first annual Flat Earth International Conference, held in North Carolina in November 2017
Theorists claim that satellite images and evidence pointing to a spherical Earth are part of a ’round Earth conspiracy’ orchestrated by NASA and other government agencies.
Proponents of the bizarre theory also claim the Earth is stationary in space rather than orbiting the sun.
Some believe the Earth is covered by a glass dome which sits over the flat disc.
The international scientific community has consistently denounced the Flat Earth theory.
Decades of space imagery and peer-reviewed astronomical research back their claims.
NASA has proved that the Earth is round using satellites, GPS and images from space, but ‘Flat Earthers’ believe the space agency is lying.
References
- ^ have travelled to Antarctica (www.dailymail.co.uk)
- ^ in homemade rockets (www.dailymail.co.uk)
- ^ Reddit (www.dailymail.co.uk)
- ^ becomes laughable to ignore them all (www.dailymail.co.uk)
- ^ WHAT IS FLAT EARTH THEORY? (www.dailymail.co.uk)