What Would Happen If the Earth Was Flat?
Exploring the scientific consequences and implications of a flat earth theory
The Earth is not flat, and we have known this for thousands of years.
Aristotle, a famous philosopher from ancient Greece, proved it by traveling to Egypt and seeing different constellations of stars from the other side of the world.
Another Greek philosopher, Eratosthenes, used a stick and the Sun’s light to calculate the Earth’s circumference. Despite this knowledge, some people believe the Earth is flat.
In the 1800s, the idea of a flat Earth resurfaced, and in the 1950s, a group of people formed a society of Flat Earthers. With the rise of the internet, this group grew in number and attracted famous members, such as movie stars, rappers, and athletes. Flat Earth theorists have different models supporting their idea, but none of them are supported by scientific evidence.
But let’s imagine for a moment that the Earth was flat.
What would our world be like?
Well, for starters, we would all be dead.
Gravity is the force that keeps us and everything else on Earth from floating off into space. Without gravity, we would all be floating around and unable to live. On a flat Earth, gravity would be different, and it’s unclear how it would behave.
But even if it did exist, the further away you got from the center of the Earth, the stronger it would pull you back toward the center. This means that trying to reach the supposed ice walls of Antarctica at the edge would be impossible, as the gravitational pull would make it seem like you’re climbing a never-ending hill.
Water bodies, like oceans, seas, and rivers, would converge at the center of the planet.
Rain, snow, and hail would fall towards the center, and trees would grow diagonally, developing in the opposite direction of gravity’s pull. This would make life on Earth impossible as we know it.
Without its spherical shape, Earth would lose its layered structure and behave very differently.
Earth is made up of three layers, with the densest material sinking to the core, the lighter making up the mantle, and the lightest making up the crust. The outer core is composed of molten iron and nickel, which act as a giant magnet, creating Earth’s magnetic field. Without this magnetic field, our atmosphere would dissipate, and our oceans would spill into space, leaving Earth a lifeless, barren land.
If somehow we managed to survive all of gravity’s challenges, our living experience on a disc-shaped planet would still be completely different.
Flattening Earth would increase its surface area by two-and-a-half times. This means traveling across the planet would take significantly longer, and satellites wouldn’t be able to orbit or hover above a flat Earth. Without satellites, we’d lose access to GPS services, leaving us without navigation, synchronized time, or the ability to perform all sorts of global financial transactions.
Having no satellites also means that we won’t be able to study our planet from the atmosphere. For example, the Gravity Recovery and Climate Experiment (GRACE) satellite was launched in 2002 to take detailed measurements of the Earth and collect data to significantly enhance our understanding of global climate patterns. Without such satellites, our understanding of our planet would be limited.
For a long time, humans thought that we were at the center of the Universe.
It wasn’t until 1543 that Polish scientist Nicolaus Copernicus first hypothesized that ours is just another planet revolving around a star. Yet, almost 500 years later, some people still believe that we are at the center of the Universe. They propose this through two models, with the only difference between them being how the Sun rotates around us.
In the first model, the Sun circles above the Earth and sheds its light and warmth on certain regions like a high-powered desk lamp.
In the second model, the Sun is like a spotlight, illuminating only the part of the Earth that it faces.
Both models are incorrect because they ignore the fact that the Earth revolves around the Sun and rotates on its own axis. This is called the heliocentric model, and it’s supported by vast amounts of scientific evidence.
In the heliocentric model, the Earth is just one of the planets revolving around the Sun. The planets don’t orbit in perfect circles but rather in elliptical paths, which is why sometimes they appear closer or farther away from us. The movement of the planets is also affected by the gravitational pull of other planets and stars, making it a complex dance that scientists have been studying for centuries.
Through the use of telescopes, spacecraft, and other instruments, we have learned a great deal about our solar system and the Universe beyond. We have discovered planets around other stars, black holes, and even the afterglow of the Big Bang, which is the event that created the Universe as we know it.
Our understanding of the Universe has also led to incredible technological advancements. Satellites orbiting the Earth provide us with weather forecasts, internet access, and television signals. Telescopes allow us to observe distant galaxies and stars, and we’ve even sent spacecraft to explore other planets in our solar system.
Science is always evolving, and our understanding of the Universe is constantly expanding. But this wouldn’t be possible if we held on to outdated beliefs or refused to accept scientific evidence. It’s important to always question what we think we know and be open to new ideas and discoveries.
