- Question
- Is the Earth flat?
- Position‹2 of 2
- No, the Earth is not flat
Certain constellations can only be seen in the Northern Hemisphere but disappear in the Southern Hemisphere. The vice-versa is true as well. The Earth is a globe because constellations appear to shift and disappear due to the spherical curvature of the Earth.
The argument
Which stars a person can see depends on where on Earth they are standing, and that dependence is what a globe predicts and a flat Earth does not. The north star (Polaris) cannot be seen farther than about 2° south latitude. On a globe this is exactly what should happen: Polaris sits above the northern axis, so as an observer travels south the curve of the surface tilts it toward the horizon until the ground itself blocks it. The flat model cannot produce that result. Using FE measurements (12,500 miles from the north pole to the ice wall or dome, 3,100 mile Polaris altitude), neither pole star (Polaris/Sigma Octantis) should ever be visibly lower than 14° above the horizon. On a flat plane a light suspended above it remains above it from everywhere on the plane; distance would make it dimmer and lower, but it would not set. The model's own numbers therefore predict a star that never disappears, while observers south of the equator report that it does. The same test can be run on whole constellations, and it was run long ago. Greek philosopher Aristotle also figured out in 350 B.C. that different constellations are visible from different latitudes. For example, the Big Dipper is always visible at 41° north latitude, but below 25° south latitude, it can't be seen at all. On the other hand, in the Southern Hemisphere, the Southern Cross can't be seen until south of Florida Keys in the Northern Hemisphere. A flat surface under a single sky offers no reason why one group of stars should vanish as another rises when an observer moves south. A curved surface requires it. Since different constellations are seen in different places, the Earth is a globe.
Premises
Counter-arguments
The sun, moon, and stars are all objects only a few thousand miles above the sea level of the Earth. As a result, all of these objects are very small. The reason why constellations only appear in certain parts of the world is because of the effect of perspective. For example, with the Big Dipper, the constellation cannot be seen in the Southern Hemisphere because of the increased distance between where one is standing and the constellation.
Rejecting the premises
[Rejecting P1] Stars and constellations are only visible in certain parts of the flat world because the farther you walk away from them, the smaller they appear, until they disappear altogether.