Exploring the Flatness of the Earth: Kansas' Largest and Flattest Spot

[houlahound]

Kansas I have been told has the flattest and biggest flat spot on earth.

Any actual data on the size/area and flatness. Is it an outlier in Earth curvature.

Most google info was junk. Looking for science data if this is even true.

Posted here cos I am not sure if science or junk science.

 

[Borek]

What they mean by "flat" is that it is locally never far for a perfect geoid (no valleys nor mountains).

I think I have seen a paper where they defined the flatness in these terms and compared Kansas to an apple (tongue in cheek, but the approach was quite reasonable).

 

[houlahound]

I have done bench top experiments to mark out electric field lines.

Could we measure less divergence of gravitational field lines in this area ie Kansas.

 

[Evo]

The flattest place on earth

In this week's Maphead, Ken Jennings describes Salar de Uyuni, a salt flat in Bolivia that's the flattest place on earth.['/quote]

http://www.cntraveler.com/stories/2014-07-28/salar-uyuni-maphead

Kansas is not the flattest state, despite common perceptions.

The flattest state is Florida.

Surprising Findings

Based on their own on-the-ground experience, Dobson and Campbell, who hails from southwest Kansas, predicted that Kansas would not be among the top five flattest states. They were right. It took seventh place, behind Florida, Illinois, North Dakota, Louisiana, Minnesota, and Delaware.

http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2014/03/140314-flattest-states-geography-topography-science/

 

[SW VandeCarr]

The highest point in Kansas is called Mt Sunflower at 4039 ft (1231 m). It's not really a mountain, just a high point on flat appearing land near the western border. The lowest point is in the SE corner of the state at 679 ft (207 m) above sea level. Kansas looks flat because the land tilts upward fairly uniformly from east to west.

http://www.netstate.com/states/geography/mapcom/ks_mapscom.htm