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EQUATOR PICTURE LINK

Uganda is one of only ten countries in the world which the equator passes through. And now we've been there! Yeah!

Now for a test. An interesting proven fact is that water rotates in a counterclockwise direction in the northern hemisphere and spins in a clockwise direction in the southern hemisphere. It's said that this phenomenon can be demonstrated by watching water drain down a sink or toilet. And while we were at the equator, what a perfect place to check this theory out. Look at the pictures!

BUT this is actually a fallacy! I was just conducting research on the Internet, and I've come across article after article on how this common demonstration is not true.

For example, according to Alistair Fraser, a professor of meteorology at Pennsylvania State University, "The direction of rotation in draining sinks and toilets is NOT determined by the rotation of the earth, but by rotation that was introduced earlier when it was being filled or subsequently being disturbed (say by washing). The rotation of the earth does influence the direction of rotation of large weather systems and large vortices in the oceans, for these are very long-lived phenomena and so allow the very weak Coriolis force to produce a significant effect, with time. "

Fraser adds that it's possible to detect the Coriolis effect in a draining bowl of water, but only if the bowl is perfectly round, the draining hole is so minuscule that it takes hours to drain, and the water is left to sit still for a week. The man in Uganda who demonstrated to us the changing spin cycle of the water as he stepped back and forth across the equator was a fake!

You learn something every day! Wow.

For a full explanation, check out Fraser's web site at: Bad Meteorology.


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