Equator Crossing Mogotio
Kenya. Mogotio.
Actually our GPS indicated the real equator was further down the road, right in the curve.
So how is it possible to make the water draining trick work?
Well, because it is a trick.
The twisting effect of the Coriolis force is real, and it does influence certain large things such as the movement of air masses. It is also commonly claimed to affect the way water spirals down drains in different parts of the world: Water in a pan, sink, or toilet rotates counter clockwise in the northern hemisphere and clockwise in the southern hemisphere. This is due to the Coriolis Effect, which is caused by the rotation of the Earth.
However, the Coriolis effect is so small that it plays no role in determining the direction in which water rotates as it exits from a draining sink or toilet. The Coriolis effect produces a measurable influence over huge distances and long periods of time, neither of which applies to the typical terrestrial bathroom.
Toilets and sinks drain in the directions they do because of the way water is directed into them or pulled from them. If water enters in a swirling motion (as it does when a toilet is flushed, for example), the water will exit in that same swirling pattern. As well, most basins have irregular surfaces and are not perfectly level, factors that influence the direction in which water spirals down their drains. The configuration of taps and drains is responsible for the direction of spin given to water draining from sinks and bathtubs to a degree that overwhelms the slight influence of the Coriolis force.
The belief that the Coriolis force influences the direction in which water drains from plumbing fixtures is widespread and has been repeated as fact in a number of venues, including popular television shows (such as world traveler Michael Palin’s Pole to Pole series) and even in textbooks. It’s also been promulgated by any number of hucksters who set up rigged demonstrations along the equator for the amusement of gullible tourists
www.snopes.com/fact-check/coriolis-effect/
If you see the demonstration you'll notice they poor the water on different sides of the plug hole when they do their performance.
First they pour the water from a bucket, making sure the water is flowing in to the left of the drain hole. This sets up a natural clockwise spin to the water overall; it hits the back of the basin and will flow to the right from there.
Then they move their show to the other side of the equator and pour the water to the right of the drain hole. That naturally sets up a counterclockwise rotation to the water!
www.slate.com/blogs/bad_astronomy/2012/03/27/flushing_out...
Above links come with a video demonstration.
Equator Crossing Mogotio
Kenya. Mogotio.
Actually our GPS indicated the real equator was further down the road, right in the curve.
So how is it possible to make the water draining trick work?
Well, because it is a trick.
The twisting effect of the Coriolis force is real, and it does influence certain large things such as the movement of air masses. It is also commonly claimed to affect the way water spirals down drains in different parts of the world: Water in a pan, sink, or toilet rotates counter clockwise in the northern hemisphere and clockwise in the southern hemisphere. This is due to the Coriolis Effect, which is caused by the rotation of the Earth.
However, the Coriolis effect is so small that it plays no role in determining the direction in which water rotates as it exits from a draining sink or toilet. The Coriolis effect produces a measurable influence over huge distances and long periods of time, neither of which applies to the typical terrestrial bathroom.
Toilets and sinks drain in the directions they do because of the way water is directed into them or pulled from them. If water enters in a swirling motion (as it does when a toilet is flushed, for example), the water will exit in that same swirling pattern. As well, most basins have irregular surfaces and are not perfectly level, factors that influence the direction in which water spirals down their drains. The configuration of taps and drains is responsible for the direction of spin given to water draining from sinks and bathtubs to a degree that overwhelms the slight influence of the Coriolis force.
The belief that the Coriolis force influences the direction in which water drains from plumbing fixtures is widespread and has been repeated as fact in a number of venues, including popular television shows (such as world traveler Michael Palin’s Pole to Pole series) and even in textbooks. It’s also been promulgated by any number of hucksters who set up rigged demonstrations along the equator for the amusement of gullible tourists
www.snopes.com/fact-check/coriolis-effect/
If you see the demonstration you'll notice they poor the water on different sides of the plug hole when they do their performance.
First they pour the water from a bucket, making sure the water is flowing in to the left of the drain hole. This sets up a natural clockwise spin to the water overall; it hits the back of the basin and will flow to the right from there.
Then they move their show to the other side of the equator and pour the water to the right of the drain hole. That naturally sets up a counterclockwise rotation to the water!
www.slate.com/blogs/bad_astronomy/2012/03/27/flushing_out...
Above links come with a video demonstration.