The speed of an object on the equator of the earth

[Anaxagoras]

Of course the earth is spinning

Then I guess we agree and I don't really understand what point you were trying to make.

[robinson]

If you take an orange and jam a stick through it, then hold it out and and you rotate your body 360 degrees, the orange always is in the same relation to you, and you made a complete revolution. Did the orange rotate on it’s axis 360 degrees?

[robinson]

Answering that question gives the answer to the moon question

It doesn’t have to be an orange

Also, an object on a tower on the actual earth is the same question. Does an object on the equator that is unmoving, rotate on it’s axis every 24 hours?

( one could argue it does)

Or one could realize it does not, because yes, it’s arguing about a mental construct, not reality

[Moe]

[Abdul Alhazred]

I agree with ceptimus on this one.

But instead of letting the thread die, let's have a discussion on the best way to lose weight.

Taking into account difference in altitude as well as Coriolis forces, a commercial flight from Chicago-O'Hare to Quito should do the trick.



The hard part is getting back from Quito without regaining the weight. Maybe walking instead of flying?

[Pyrrho]

[robinson]

The mental trick to be able to think the motion of a point on the equator, is that somehow we think the earth is not moving, which if we are using any motion as movement, can’t be true. As we know, the earth is moving around the sun, the sun is moving around the galaxy, and even the galaxy is considered moving in relation to the rest of the Universe.

So, and this seems self evident, if we claim the circular motion of the earth counts as movement, then so does everything else, and the speed of a point in the equator is nothing at all like 1000 mph

It’s not even in the ballpark, the speed of a point in the equator isn’t even close to 1000 mph, much less “ heading East”, which is the claim NASA and others make.

The mental trick is to only consider one very small factor in calculating the speed, which is OK if you are saying “ relative to ....”

Relative to what? That is the question. In relation to what POV are you claiming this motion? What location are you measuring from?

If you are going to ignore every other motion to make the claim, you still have to define where you are measuring the speed from. Which nobody here has, and nobody anywhere has. And since there actually isn’t anywhere you can measure or observe this speed, it just isn’t how it is


Certainly there is motion, that’s not the problem.

[robinson]

Bear with me, because of all the time spent already.

[robinson]

Then I guess we agree and I don't really understand what point you were trying to make.

Here's the first one.

So no, an object on the equator is not moving at 1000 mph. In fact, it isn't moving at all. Unless your point you measure it from is moving, but even then, you never get a 1000 mph measurement of speed. It's not physically possible.

movement is relative, except when it is absolute.

[robinson2]

If you are going to count the rotation of the earth as speed, then the speed of the earth around the sun also counts as speed. So when the point on the equator is going with the earth's speed around the sun, the point is moving at 68.000 mph, then reduces to 67,000 mph when it is 6 hours later, reduces to 66,000 6 hours later, when it is opposite the motion, then 67,000 mph again, then 6 hours later 68,000 mph.

This claim is just as valid as the 1000 mph claim.


67,000 mph = earth's average speed around the sun

[robinson2]

This "going east" thing is an entirely different matter.

[robinson]

Shut the hell up. You are making it complicated.

[Abdul Alhazred]

The speed in one direction is cancelled out by the speed in the other direction.

So the average speed of the surface of the Earth is zero with respect to the center of the earth because any point going in one direction is cancelled out by its antipodal point whizzing by the other way.

Likewise the speed of the Earth with respect to the Sun is zero (on average) because the speed at any given moment is cancelled out by the speed in the other direction six months later.

So that whatever may be the case at any given point at any given moment, the average is zero.

Similar reasoning for the "grand year" around the center of the galaxy.

We are motionless (but only on the average).

[robinson]

[robinson]

[robinson]

Shit just got real

[Abdul Alhazred]

Yeah OK, but it all cancels out.

[Hotarubi]

What happens if you reverse the polarity?

[Abdul Alhazred]

It all cancels out in the other direction.

[Hotarubi]

Yeah, but doesnt all the furniture pile up at one end of the room?