why doesn't the earth move beneath you when you jump?

Question

I DID THE MATH ON THIS IT WOULD MOVE 6 IN" IF YOUR JUMP LASTED .0012 OF A SEC OR 24 FT FOR 1 WHOLE SEC.

Answer 1

This is a great question and has real potential. Yes, it's true that the earth doe's indeed move beneath you even though you won't see or notice it. I jumped and timed myself and found that my time in the air was .5 sec. I tried to start and stop my stop watch as fast as I could and could only do it in .17 sec. Yours was really a fast jump. When jumping you increase the distance of your orbit from the center of the earth, so to land exactly back in the same point, you need a slight increase in speed going up and decrease coming down and only this would satisfy no earth movement beneath you when you jumped, providing that you jumped in the same direction as the earth's rotation. The speed calculations decease as you get closer to the north or south pole.

Answer 2

The Earth does move beneath you, but because of conservation of momentum, you also move with the Earth while you are in mid air (the air actually also moves with the Earth because of conservation of momentum again).

The same applies to anything that flies in the sky. While they are in the sky, the Earth rotates, but so does the atmosphere and anything flying within it. That's why anything thrown straight up falls back down to exactly the same spot, and not to a different spot.

Answer 3

Because when you jump you go high but also have the speed that earth gives you so you really move up and at the direction the earth moves.

Answer 4

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Answer 5

You are already moving at the same speed as the earth.
Once you leave the surface, you start to decelerate.
But, unless you can jump REALLY HIGH, you won't slow down enough to notice the earth's movement under you.

Answer 6

We move along with the earth. And so any movement of earth is not noticeable. This is similar to: If you jump inside a flying airplane, the airplane does not move under you.

Answer 7

texan had a perfect example.

if you're on the roof of a moving car, and you jump, it doesnt speed in front of you, and you dont crash on the ground. you're moving at the same rate.

this is the same reason that if you're in an elevator which is falling, jumping before it hits the ground will not save your life. you're still moving downwards, even if when you jump it feels like you're moving up.

Answer 8

As mentioned by everyone, IT DOES, but since you usually come down within a fraction of a second, it also moves right back to the place it started when you do..............Gravity is like a big rubber band connecting you to the earth.

Answer 9

It does! It just the same as you jumping on the roof of a car while it's moving. You move with it!

Answer 10

it does but it so slow you cant tell the land the usa is on move about 1" a year to the west