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The following excerpt is taken from Tuesday's NYT, and the quote is
attributed to the associate director of the division of ocean and
climate physics at the Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory of Columbia
University. Any thoughts with respect to the use here of the
centrifugal force?
The Earth’s Paunch By C. CLAIBORNE RAY Q. I know the earth bulges at
the equator. Does this include the oceans?
A. There is an oceanic bulge, said Arnold L. Gordon, associate
director of the division of ocean and climate physics at the
Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory of Columbia University.
“As the earth spins, a centrifugal force is directed outward, away
from the axis of rotation,” Dr. Gordon said. “This force is strongest
for a particle at the equator that has a longer path to follow around
the earth’s axis each day, despite its greater distance from the
earth’s axis.” Meanwhile, he said, gravity, as induced by the earth’s
mass, is also acting on each particle. The forces combine to produce
what is called the observed gravity, which does not point to the
earth’s center, but is off center.