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Mitad del Mundo
The Equator. I flew over it a few days ago, but I finally get to stand on the great circle, the seam of the planet, the mid-field stripe, the 50 yard line... or as they like to say around here, the Middle of the Earth. We traveled via>>>>
Geek Notes
-Some interesting myths and realities about the Equator. The locals put on quite a show with a variety of fantastic claims about the magic of the equator. Sometimes its okay to drop the cynicism and breath in the pseudo-scientific hoo-ha being peddled... life is what you make it and all that. Eggs balanced on the head of a nail, demonstrations of the Coriolis effect using portable kitchen sinks, and a variety of other parlor tricks are entertaining and only fool those who wish to be fooled. Interestingly enough, some of the real science associated with the equator is better that the tricks. I've already mentioned the geographical and physical significance of the Equator in previous posts, but I saved the best for last; the physics of the equator.
Thanks to Einstein's special and general relativity, and some old-fashioned Newtonian physics, there are three more things to say about the Equator, and then I'll shut up about it. What I'm about to talk about is not unique to the Equator, but the combined effect of the three is maximized there. First, you need to recall that as the Earth spins on it's axis, it does so at the rate of one rotation per day (duh). Since the Equator is about 25,000 miles in circumference, when you're there, you're moving at just under 1000 mph. By contrast, on the north or south poles, you'd be standing still relative to those on the Equator. So what? So Einstein taught us that clocks moving faster than other clocks, tick a little slower. Technically speaking, this means you age a little slower at the Equator, all else being equal (that's the special relativity part). But there's the rub. All else is not equal. Because of the equatorial bulge, you are farther from the Earth's center. This means you "feel" less gravity at the Equator than at the north and south poles. That's right, you're about 0.3% lighter at the Equator. It also means time moves a little faster than at the poles (speed and gravity slow time down). So the slowing of time caused by the special relativistic effect is offset by quickening of time caused by the general relativistic effect. But wait, there's more! The Newtonian bit involves the centrifugal force created by the spinning of the Earth. In a nutshell, you're being "flung" outward by the spinning of the Earth, the same as you are flung off a merry-go-round as it spins. This makes you a little bit lighter as well (0.2%) and creates an imperceptible constant force of acceleration. That also speeds up time a little. I haven't found an authoritative study about the interaction of these forces and the resulting net time differential between observers on the Equator and those at mid-latitudes, but the differences in time are within the measurement tolerances of atomic clocks and the effects are real.
Country: Ecuador
Elevation: 18,996 Feet