Question about the shape of the earth

Thread starter paulojomaje
Start date Sep 22, 2011
Tags

Earth Shape

AI Thread Summary

The Earth is not a perfect sphere due to its rotation and the properties of its materials. Unlike a rigid ball, the Earth, being composed of various materials, exhibits a slight bulge at the equator due to centrifugal force from its spin. This bulging effect is more pronounced in less rigid materials, such as jello. Additionally, the uneven distribution of mass across the planet contributes to its irregular shape, resulting in a geoid form rather than a perfect sphere. The interplay of these factors explains why the Earth's shape deviates from a perfect roundness.

Sep 22, 2011

paulojomaje

Why is the Earth not perfectly round

Earth sciences news on Phys.org

Sep 22, 2011

phinds

Science Advisor

Insights Author

Gold Member

2024 Award

if you spin a ball that is not perfectly rigid, it bulges outward slightly at the spin equator. If it were made of jello, it would bulge out quite a lot.

Sep 22, 2011

TheMadMonk

The distribution of mass on Earth is not constant, altering the shape of the earth.

Sep 23, 2011

paulojomaje

Thanks.

Sep 30, 2011

Gannet

Suggest you checkout this link
http://www.lhup.edu/~dsimanek/scenario/centrip.htm"

Last edited by a moderator: May 5, 2017

Thread 'M7.6 Drake Passage; M7.4, M6.7 Philippines, M6.3 Papua New Guinea Earthquakes'

M 7.6 - Drake Passage 2025-10-10 20:29:20 (UTC) 60.196°S 61.799°W 8.8 km depth https://earthquake.usgs.gov/earthquakes/eventpage/us6000rgf4/executive A relatively shallow earthquake. Aftershocks have occurred. M 7.4 - 20 km E of Santiago, Philippines 2025-10-10 01:43:59 (UTC) 7.265°N 126.755°E 58.1 km depth https://earthquake.usgs.gov/earthquakes/eventpage/us6000rfwz/executive M 6.7 - 23 km ESE of Santiago, Philippines 2025-10-10 11:12:07 (UTC) 7.172°N 126.755°E 61.2 km depth...

View full post »

Thread 'The usage of dipole-dipole array in Lumpur Sidoarjo (Lusi)'

Does anyone know whether the dipole-dipole configuration has been used for extracting resistivity tomography in Mud Volcano of Lumpur Sidoarjo (Lusi) in Sidoarjo, Indonesia?. If there has already exist, please inform me... Thank you for the help.

View full post »

Thread 'The Secrets of Prof. Verschure's Rosetta Stones'

(Edit: since the thread title was changed, this first sentence is too cryptic: the original title referred to a Tool song....) Besides being a favorite song by a favorite band, the thread title is a straightforward play on words. This summer, as a present to myself for being promoted, I purchased a collection of thin sections that I believe comprise the research materials of Prof. Rob Verschure, who at the time was faculty in the Geological Institute in Amsterdam. What changed this...

View full post »