Flat Earth: the eclipse science that doesn't add up
The August 2 eclipse and January 2028's annular one over Seville, Córdoba and Valencia in Spain challenge flat Earth theory. How do flat Earthers explain them?
English · Original discussion in Spanish · Published
The eclipses flat Earthers can't explain
Predicting eclipses is one of the few sciences you can verify from home. The calendar says that on August 2 next year there will be one visible from the Strait of Gibraltar, and that in January 2028 another annular eclipse will cross Seville, Córdoba and Valencia. The precision is nothing new: it goes back to the Babylonians. The awkward question is a different one: if the Earth is flat, how does that prediction fit in?
The flat Earth answer is more sociology than astronomy. Some call it brainbending: the ability to twist any reality until it fits the dogma. And if it doesn't fit, there's always the insult. The most substantial argument points out that eclipses were already predicted in Antiquity and the Middle Ages, when a flat Earth was common sense. That only proves empirical observation can work without a correct theory.
The old five-peseta coin analogy sums it up: face on, you can't see its edge; edge on, the curvature appears. The eclipse doesn't ask whether you believe in it. It will be visible where it was announced. When it happens, the choice will be between evidence and dogma. What does a wizard explain better than a mathematical model of three spheres?
Predicting eclipses is one of the few sciences you can verify from home. The calendar says that on August 2 next year there will be one visible from the Strait of Gibraltar, and that in January 2028 another annular eclipse will cross Seville, Córdoba and Valencia. The precision is nothing new: it goes back to the Babylonians. The awkward question is a different one: if the Earth is flat, how does that prediction fit in?
The flat Earth answer is more sociology than astronomy. Some call it brainbending: the ability to twist any reality until it fits the dogma. And if it doesn't fit, there's always the insult. The most substantial argument points out that eclipses were already predicted in Antiquity and the Middle Ages, when a flat Earth was common sense. That only proves empirical observation can work without a correct theory.
The old five-peseta coin analogy sums it up: face on, you can't see its edge; edge on, the curvature appears. The eclipse doesn't ask whether you believe in it. It will be visible where it was announced. When it happens, the choice will be between evidence and dogma. What does a wizard explain better than a mathematical model of three spheres?
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Summary of a discussion on Burbuja.info - Foro de economía, actualidad y política., translated from Spanish and reviewed before publication. Read the full discussion (29 replies).
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