tbourner Posted June 5, 2009 Share Posted June 5, 2009 Do you weigh less on the equator than at the North Pole, due to the centrifugal force? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JustGav Posted June 5, 2009 Share Posted June 5, 2009 Hmmm, interesting question, there is also the possibility that you weigh more due to there being more earth mass generating more gravity.. perhaps they cancel each other out Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tony tt Posted June 5, 2009 Share Posted June 5, 2009 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Carl_S Posted June 5, 2009 Share Posted June 5, 2009 cetis paribus, yes you would weigh less. In real terms however, you would also weigh less becuase you would be wearing less and probably have the runs coupled with being more dehydrated. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AlanM Posted June 5, 2009 Share Posted June 5, 2009 Nope, you weigh slightly more. Due to the earth being "squashed" not a sphere you are slightly further fom the centre and slightly greater gravitational force Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tbourner Posted June 5, 2009 Author Share Posted June 5, 2009 Further from the centre of the Earth should mean less gravity? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AlanM Posted June 5, 2009 Share Posted June 5, 2009 There is more mass between you and the centre, as it is a greater distance, and it is the mass of the earth which creates the gravity Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JustGav Posted June 5, 2009 Share Posted June 5, 2009 Further from the centre of the Earth should mean less gravity? Agreed, but you are not further as you are still on it (if you follow), but there is a greater pull from the earth in a parallel manner to your body, due to a greater concentration of matter. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Matt H Posted June 5, 2009 Share Posted June 5, 2009 Do you weigh less on the equator than at the North Pole, due to the centrifugal force? Weight is only to do with Gravity. But i quess it would seem lighter I presume you could way slightly more or less depending on where you are in the world but it will be irrelevant in the grand scheme of things. Another silly question where the results would be negligible Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cadman 26 Posted June 5, 2009 Share Posted June 5, 2009 Hmmm, interesting question, there is also the possibility that you weigh more due to there being more earth mass generating more gravity.. perhaps they cancel each other out True, but you would be further away from the centre of the earth (where the density is at it's greatest) therefore the gravitational pull would be less. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AlanM Posted June 5, 2009 Share Posted June 5, 2009 You also weigh slightly less when the moon is at its closest to earth due to its gravitational pull I am going home now Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Carl_S Posted June 5, 2009 Share Posted June 5, 2009 I can envisage this being a massive problem, when I go to tesco's later today. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AlexJames Posted June 5, 2009 Share Posted June 5, 2009 Do you weigh less on the equator than at the North Pole, due to the centrifugal force? I was quite intrigued to find out that... a friend of mine, who studied physics at uni and now has a degree in it.. he works as an engineer for some posh aircraft company... the first thing they were taught in uni was that centrifugal force doesnt exsist. Only the principal does... If you fill a bucket with water... cut a whole in the bottom of it.. and then swing it in a circle really fast... you would expect the water to fall out the bottom.. but it doesnt. All the way through uni, all of his lecturers spent their time convincing people that it doesnt exsist.... lol Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JustGav Posted June 5, 2009 Share Posted June 5, 2009 True, but you would be further away from the centre of the earth (where the density is at it's greatest) therefore the gravitational pull would be less. Hmmm, disagree there...gravity does not originate from an infinitly small single point, but is rather a collective force from the cumulative mass. This is starting to head into quantum physics where it all gets very interesting. I'd actually be interested to know what the answer is, as all my comments are purely from the scientific knowledge I've gained over the years and could possibly be incorrect. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tbourner Posted June 5, 2009 Author Share Posted June 5, 2009 Agreed, but you are not further as you are still on it (if you follow), but there is a greater pull from the earth in a parallel manner to your body, due to a greater concentration of matter. I thought it was the same amount of matter but at different density, due to it being 'squashed'? So you're further away from the centre but with the same 'mass' as you would have beneath you at the poles. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ivan Posted June 5, 2009 Share Posted June 5, 2009 If a plane were to try to take off facing West on the equator, would the earths spin act like a conveyor belt? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JustGav Posted June 5, 2009 Share Posted June 5, 2009 If you fill a bucket with water... cut a whole in the bottom of it.. and then swing it in a circle really fast... you would expect the water to fall out the bottom.. but it doesnt. It would have fallen out before you even began swinging it, surely Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AlanM Posted June 5, 2009 Share Posted June 5, 2009 I was quite intrigued to find out that... a friend of mine, who studied physics at uni and now has a degree in it.. he works as an engineer for some posh aircraft company... the first thing they were taught in uni was that centrifugal force doesnt exsist. Only the principal does... If you fill a bucket with water... cut a whole in the bottom of it.. and then swing it in a circle really fast... you would expect the water to fall out the bottom.. but it doesnt. All the way through uni, all of his lecturers spent their time convincing people that it doesnt exsist.... lol Yep it does, it will go straight out the hole But there is no such thing as centrifugal force - it is for explanatory purposes only although though an opposite force does exist Centripetal Force Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JustGav Posted June 5, 2009 Share Posted June 5, 2009 I thought it was the same amount of matter but at different density, due to it being 'squashed'? So you're further away from the centre but with the same 'mass' as you would have beneath you at the poles. You raise an interesting point there... which possibly negates my theory. This might require some research Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AlanM Posted June 5, 2009 Share Posted June 5, 2009 Nah, it has not been physically squashed, just has that appearnce - density variation throughout the earth is insignificant Anyway, I have to go Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Carl_S Posted June 5, 2009 Share Posted June 5, 2009 Hello Ivan, The answer to your facinating question is No. Since the plane is already travelling the same speed as the earth, even when it is parked up. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tbourner Posted June 5, 2009 Author Share Posted June 5, 2009 Nah, it has not been physically squashed, just has that appearnce - density variation throughout the earth is insignificant Anyway, I have to go Bye! And yes I agree, but what I said still applies whether it was squashed or stretched or whatever. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JustGav Posted June 5, 2009 Share Posted June 5, 2009 Do you weigh differently at the North Pole than what you do at the equator? Yes you do, because at the equator the centrifugal force due to the spinning of the Earth is at its maximum, and vanishes at the poles. This means that the attractive force of gravity is slightly reduced because it is directed towards the center of the Earth, while the centripetal force is directed outward from the center. The effective acceleration of gravity at the poles is 980.665 cm/sec/sec while at the equator it is 3.39 cm/sec/sec less due to the centrifugal force. If you weighed 100 pounds at the north pole on a spring scale, at the equator you would weigh 99.65 pounds, or 5.5 ounces less. Your mass, in grams, however would stay the same because 'grams' is a measure of the resistance of a body to being moved and has nothing to do with acceleration or gravity. Your mass in kilograms would remain the same. It is common for people to use 'pounds' and 'grams' interchangeably but they are not. From NASA's site http://image.gsfc.nasa.gov/poetry/ask/a11511.html I retract my previous statements because they are WRONG! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Carl_S Posted June 5, 2009 Share Posted June 5, 2009 Now where the fcuk is my hat? Cheers gav. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tannhauser Posted June 5, 2009 Share Posted June 5, 2009 From NASA's site http://image.gsfc.nasa.gov/poetry/ask/a11511.html I retract my previous statements because they are WRONG! The NASA answer doesn't say anything about the distance from surface to centre, but that adds to the effect. As other people have said, the earth bulges at the equator (like me) and so anyone there is further away from the Earth's centre of mass. The gravitational force is inversely proportional to the square of the distance between the centres of mass of the two bodies (the earth and the person standing on it in this case). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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