Thread: Bottomless pit
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Old 12-27-2007, 02:41 PM   #14
equazcion
Thinks "pie" is a funny word.
 
Join Date: Dec 2006
Location: New York City, NY, United States of America, Earth
Posts: 65
I dunno about that. For a skydiver, for a example, it takes very little time once he's out of the plane to lose forward momentum and drop straight down vertically. It's possible that by the time the rotational speed has slowed to the point where your momentum would throw you against the walls of the hole, you'd already have lost most of that momentum.

Also take into consideration the plunger effect. The confined airtight space of the tunnel (aside from its two openings) would act as its own transport for anything contained within it. As the Earth moves, the air within the tunnel would move with it, to some extent carrying objects within it along.

There's also lateral gravity to consider. While the main thrust of it would be pulling you towards the core, the mass of Earth on each of your sides would also exert force, carrying you along as it spins.

I think between all these different factors, I think there's a good chance you could freefall straight down to the Earth's core without hitting the sides, assuming your initial jump was properly centered within the diameter of the tunnel.

Last edited by equazcion; 12-27-2007 at 02:58 PM.
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