Why The Earth Is Round

One of the main reasons why the earth is round is gravity. Gravity is a force that attracts objects with mass to each other. The earth has a very large mass, so it attracts all the smaller objects on its surface, such as rocks, water, and air. Gravity pulls these objects towards the center of the earth, creating a spherical shape. If the earth were flat, gravity would pull everything to the center of the disk, creating a very uneven surface. Another reason why the earth is round is rotation. The earth spins around its axis once every 24 hours, creating day and night. This rotation also affects the shape of the earth, because it creates a centrifugal force that pushes objects away from the axis. The centrifugal force is stronger at the equator than at the poles, so the earth bulges slightly at the equator and flattens slightly at the poles. This makes the earth an oblate spheroid, which is a sphere that is slightly squashed. One of the ways we can observe that the earth is round is by looking at the horizon. The horizon is the line where the sky and the earth seem to meet. If the earth were flat, the horizon would be a straight line that would never change. However, if we travel in any direction, we will notice that the horizon curves slightly downwards. This is because we are moving along the surface of a sphere, and the horizon is always at eye level. The farther we travel, the more curvature we will see. One of the most compelling arguments for why the Earth is round is the fact that many ships have circumambulated the globe, proving that it is possible to travel around the planet without falling off the edge. The first ship to achieve this feat was the Victoria, commanded by Juan Sebastián de Elcano, who completed the voyage in 1522 as part of Ferdinand Magellan's expedition. Magellan himself was killed in the Philippines, but his crew continued westward across the Pacific, Indian and Atlantic oceans, returning to Spain after three years and one month. Since then, many other ships have followed their example, such as Francis Drake's Golden Hind in 1580, Thomas Cavendish's Desire in 1588, and João da Gama's São Cristóvão in 1590. These voyages demonstrated that the Earth is a sphere, and that it is possible to reach any destination by sailing in either direction. Another way we can observe that the earth is round is by looking at the stars. The stars are very far away from us, so they appear to be fixed in their positions in the sky. However, if we travel to different locations on earth, we will see different stars in different positions. For example, if we travel from the northern hemisphere to the southern hemisphere, we will see different constellations and stars that are not visible in the north. This is because we are looking at different parts of the sky from different angles on a spherical earth. The earth is round because of gravity and rotation, and we can observe this fact by looking at the horizon and the stars. The shape of the earth is not a matter of opinion or belief, but a matter of fact and science.