CINCINNATI – Did the Earth help the Bengals win Sunday?
Noted astrophysicist, author and TV personality Neil deGrasse Tyson thinks it may have. In a series of tweets posted after the Bengals’ incredible comeback overtime win from a 17-point deficit, Tyson wrote that the Earth’s rotation may have helped steer the game-winning field goal between the posts.
Today's @Bengals winning OT field goal was likely enabled by a 1/3-in deflection to the right, caused by Earth’s Rotation.
— Neil deGrasse Tyson (@neiltyson) October 11, 2015
In the N. Hemisphere, Earth’s Coriolis force deflects airborne north-south projectiles to the right. About 1/2-in per 50 yds.
— Neil deGrasse Tyson (@neiltyson) October 11, 2015
The @Bengals stadium isn’t oriented exactly North-South. And the field goal was 42-yds. Yielding a 1/3-in deflection, not 1/2
— Neil deGrasse Tyson (@neiltyson) October 11, 2015
Yes, the Coriolis Effect. It’s the same force that causes large storms to spin counterclockwise north of the equator and clockwise south. Because the Earth is a sphere, points closer to the equator are spinning around its axis faster than points closer to the poles. So it makes things spin or the path of something, like a football, curve.
As Tyson points out, Paul Brown Stadium isn’t built exactly north-south, so maybe he’s on to something.
Check out the video below for more about the Coriolis Effect:
