Why Flat Earth Believers Are Planning a Journey to Antarctica

Recently, there has been a flurry of interest from flat Earth supporters regarding a potential journey to Antarctica. The primary interest seems to stem from the belief that by measuring the distance around the continent, they could gather evidence to support their claim that the Earth is flat, rather than spherical.

Money and Motivation

Some speculate that there might be an attempt to make money from this journey, fueling increased interest and funding. However, the exact details of such an endeavor are still unclear.

The Flat Earth Theory and Antarctic Journey

The advocates of flat Earth theory propose that by circumnavigating Antarctica, they could measure the distances involved and use this data to argue that the Earth is flatter than commonly accepted. According to flat Earth theory, if the Earth were flat and used a specific projection like the Azimuthal equidistant projection, the distance around the continent would be significantly larger than expected. This projection involves a flat Earth with distances directly proportional to the distance from the North Pole.

For those unfamiliar, the azimuthal equidistant projection is a map projection which depicts all points along a given radius from the center point at true angles and true distances. In this theory, the radius of a latitude would be proportional to the distance from the North Pole.

The circumference of the circle around the North Pole should theoretically be about 113,100 km, as it is nearly 18,000 km from the North Pole. This is more than six times the length of Antarctica’s shoreline. This discrepancy could be due to the fact that the distance is a straight line radius, while the shoreline is a curved path.

The Mathematical Fallacy

The reasoning behind this project is flawed due to the difference in how distances are measured on a spherical Earth compared to a flat Earth simulation.

Spherical Earth: On a spherical Earth, the distance from the equator to the North Pole is significantly greater because the Earth is rotating on an axis and by the time you reach the equator, the distance between the equator and the rotational axis is increased by approximately 50%. Azimuthal Equidistant Projection: In contrast, on a flat Earth with an azimuthal equidistant projection, the distance from the North Pole to any point on the Earth’s surface is a straight line and remains constant.

This effect is particularly evident when considering the distortion of maps. For example, countries in the Southern Hemisphere, like Australia, appear stretched out in the east-west direction. This distortion at least partially convinces some flat Earth believers that Australia doesn’t actually exist.

The distance from the North Pole to the equator on a spherical Earth is about 50% longer than the distance on a flat Earth projection. The further south you travel, the greater this discrepancy becomes due to the changing distance from the axis of rotation.

Conclusion: No Real Flat Earth Journey

Although the idea of a journey to Antarctica to prove the flat Earth theory is intriguing, there's no substantial evidence to support it. Flat Earth believers do not truly believe the Earth is flat; rather, they maintain a fantasy that requires them to avoid doing anything that might prove it is not flat. Hence, we can confidently say that such a journey to Antarctica will never happen, as it would contradict their core beliefs and expose their theory as a fallacy.

Flat Earth theory remains a controversial and fringe belief. However, as the Internet continues to spread information, it's important to distinguish between legitimate scientific knowledge and pseudoscientific notions.