![]() ![]() Pluto was once considered our solar system's ninth planet. And unlike any other planet, Uranus rotates on its side,” says Nasa.ĭwarf planet Pluto also rotates clockwise – or “retrograde”, from east to west – like Venus and Uranus. “Like Venus, Uranus rotates in the opposite direction as most other planets. Uranus is the seventh planet orbiting the sun. There are two planets that “spin on their axes from east to west”, according to the New York Times – Venus and Uranus. Uranus and dwarf planet Pluto also rotate clockwise This unusual axis rotation “is due to being upside down”, according to the Royal Museums Greenwich in the UK.īut Venus isn’t the only planet that rotates differently to its solar system neighbours. Īlthough Venus orbits the sun in an anticlockwise fashion like all the other planets in our solar system, it rotates clockwise about its axis. Not only is its day longer than its year and it doesn’t experience seasons, but “Venus spins backward”, says Nasa. Venus is often called the “twin” of Earth, but it has significant differences. So is Venus the only planet rotating the other way? We investigated.Įight planets orbit Earth’s star, the sun: Mercury, Venus, Earth, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus and Neptune.īeyond Neptune, there are smaller worlds called dwarf planets which include what the US’s National Aeronautics and Space Administration, or Nasa, calls the “longtime favorite Pluto”. Venus is Earth’s nearest planetary neighbour and the second planet from the sun.Įarth rotates on its axis in an counterclockwise direction, the opposite direction of the hands of a clock. Detroit, Gale Group, 2001: 135-136.“Venus is the only planet that rotates clockwise,” claims a graphic doing the rounds on Facebook in South Africa and viewed nearly 2,000 times. New York, Columbia University Press, c.1989. "Exposing the bathtub Coriolis myth." The Physics Teacher, V. ![]() (University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign) - Includes an explanation of the Coriolis Force and a video demonstrating the Force. Also included are Frequently Asked Questions. Presented are numerous cases where incorrect information was provided by reliable sources. Fraser sets the record straight about the Coriolis Force. (Penn State College of Earth and Mineral Sciences) - Alistair B. (Kansas State University) - An explanation from Dave Van Domelen of the Physics Education Research Group. Author: Science Reference Section, Library of Congress Related WebsitesĪ (Hopefully) Simple Explanation of the Coriolis Force * * and the centrifugal force, along the way Lake Charles WFO Radar, NOAA Photo Library. > Hurricane Rita making landfall near Beaumont, Texas. What planet is closest to the Sun Mercury. As viewed from the north pole star Polaris, Earth turns counterclockwise. Earth rotates eastward, in prograde motion. In fact, the Coriolis force pulls hurricanes away from the equator. Earths rotation or Earths spin is the rotation of planet Earth around its own axis, as well as changes in the orientation of the rotation axis in space. This means that weather phenomena such as hurricanes are not observed at the equator, although they have been observed at 5 degrees above the equator. What happens at the equator? The Coriolis force is too weak to operate on the moving air at the equator. The Coriolis force assists in setting the circulation of a hurricane into motion by producing a rightward (clockwise) deflection that sets up a cyclonic (counterclockwise) circulation around the hurricane low pressure. This is due to the rotation of the Earth. Hurricane air flow (winds) moves counter-clockwise in the northern hemisphere and clockwise in the southern hemisphere. The Coriolis Effect is the observed curved path of moving objects relative to the surface of the Earth. It is responsible for air being pulled to the right (counterclockwise) in the Northern Hemisphere and to the left (clockwise) in the Southern Hemisphere. The Coriolis force is caused by the earth’s rotation. In his work “Sur les equations du movements relative des systems des corps” (1835) the French engineer Gaspard Gustav de Coriolis (1792-1843) first described this force. Hurricane Irene at 10:10AM August 27, 2011, two hours after making landfall at Cape Lookout. Don’t believe them! The Coriolis force is simply too weak to affect such small bodies of water. Some people would like you to believe that the Coriolis force affects the flow of water down the drain in sinks, bathtubs, or toilet bowls. One can find both counterclockwise and clockwise flowing drains in both hemispheres. Amanda Mills, CDC photographer, 2011. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Public Health Image Library. It all depends upon how the water was introduced and the geometric structure of the drain. ![]()
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