Question: The movement of water going down the drain(anti clockwise and clockwise) moves in a certain way depending on what pole of the earth you are in. Why does this happen?
Sorry to tell you this, but the way water goes down a drain doesn’t actually get affected by where you are in the world! The direction might change depending on where the tap is located (left, right or central), what temperature the water is (so room temperature or colder/warmer) and which hand you use to pull the plug out.
The Earth’s rotation does influence how fluids like water move, but has a very small effect and is only clear over long distances. The opposite directions concept plays a part in the direction that storm winds blow and ocean currents circulate. This is because of the Coriolis Effect. The Coriolis Effect occurs because of the Earth’s rotation. The Earth rotates faster at the Equator than at the poles, as the Earth is wider.
Hi simbadavid,
I am also glad that Rehemat already told you the sad truth! No differences on rotations in sinks or wcs in the different hemispheres. And believe me, I have tried many times when I was in Peru or in Argentina!
As Rehemat correctly pointed out, the force that makes things turning in different direction according to the hemisphere is called Coriolis force and it is due to the Earth rotation (that indeed is anticlockwise or clockwise, depending in which hemisphere you are). Its strength thus varies according to the distance from the axis of rotation of the Earth(the Coriolis force is different at the poles or at the equator!)
This force is tiny, so it has observable effects only when motion is happening on very large scales or very slow ..maybe if you’d build a huge drain, let’s say few kilometres wide, you would see the difference in the different hemispheres.
Before starting the construction, tt is more handy to look at ocean currents and large scale winds/storms: try to check satellite images from the two hemispheres and you’ll see they rotate differently in the North and in the South.
However, the Coriolis force does not effect the motion of water only: one of the first observations of the Coriolis force in fact has been done in Italy, in Bologna, if I remember correctly, few century ago and on dry land. They were throwing some objects from the top of a high tower, and they noticed they were all deflected in the same direction. It was a tiny deflection, but still measurable!
I also lived in Australia for a while and I was eager to have my first flush of the toilet. I was disappointed when I saw the water drained straight down. As Rehemat, Jesse, and Anna said, the water will drain depending on the design of the toilet, not on the Coriolis effect. This effect will be important for large scale weather and ocean patterns but not the toilet or our swimming pools.
As the other scientists have pointed out, unfortunately, this only depends on the design of the toilet.
In terms of the Coriolis effect, this was very well explained by the others. What I may try to add is simply a small documentary which could explain further this effect: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i2mec3vgeaI
Hi simbadavid,
Sorry to tell you this, but the way water goes down a drain doesn’t actually get affected by where you are in the world! The direction might change depending on where the tap is located (left, right or central), what temperature the water is (so room temperature or colder/warmer) and which hand you use to pull the plug out.
The Earth’s rotation does influence how fluids like water move, but has a very small effect and is only clear over long distances. The opposite directions concept plays a part in the direction that storm winds blow and ocean currents circulate. This is because of the Coriolis Effect. The Coriolis Effect occurs because of the Earth’s rotation. The Earth rotates faster at the Equator than at the poles, as the Earth is wider.
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Sounds like a pretty good answer to me, Rehemat!
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Hi simbadavid,
I am also glad that Rehemat already told you the sad truth! No differences on rotations in sinks or wcs in the different hemispheres. And believe me, I have tried many times when I was in Peru or in Argentina!
As Rehemat correctly pointed out, the force that makes things turning in different direction according to the hemisphere is called Coriolis force and it is due to the Earth rotation (that indeed is anticlockwise or clockwise, depending in which hemisphere you are). Its strength thus varies according to the distance from the axis of rotation of the Earth(the Coriolis force is different at the poles or at the equator!)
This force is tiny, so it has observable effects only when motion is happening on very large scales or very slow ..maybe if you’d build a huge drain, let’s say few kilometres wide, you would see the difference in the different hemispheres.
Before starting the construction, tt is more handy to look at ocean currents and large scale winds/storms: try to check satellite images from the two hemispheres and you’ll see they rotate differently in the North and in the South.
However, the Coriolis force does not effect the motion of water only: one of the first observations of the Coriolis force in fact has been done in Italy, in Bologna, if I remember correctly, few century ago and on dry land. They were throwing some objects from the top of a high tower, and they noticed they were all deflected in the same direction. It was a tiny deflection, but still measurable!
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I also lived in Australia for a while and I was eager to have my first flush of the toilet. I was disappointed when I saw the water drained straight down. As Rehemat, Jesse, and Anna said, the water will drain depending on the design of the toilet, not on the Coriolis effect. This effect will be important for large scale weather and ocean patterns but not the toilet or our swimming pools.
0
Dear Simbadavid,
As the other scientists have pointed out, unfortunately, this only depends on the design of the toilet.
In terms of the Coriolis effect, this was very well explained by the others. What I may try to add is simply a small documentary which could explain further this effect: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i2mec3vgeaI
Hope it helps! 🙂
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