What place on Earth is the CLOSEST point to SPACE?

[AviatorTom]

Here's an interesting geography question for you...

What place on Earth is the Closest to Space?

That is, the point on Earth that is the farthest from the Earth's center, making it the closest point to Space.

You might think this is an easy question... maybe it is, maybe it isn't.

Answer will be given in a few days (Saturday).

North Pole

South Pole

Mount Everest, Nepal

Mauna Kea, Hawaii

Mount Chimborazo, Ecuador

Marianas Trench, Pacific Ocean

Mount Vesuvius, Italy

Updates

+1 y

The correct answer is Mount Chimborazo, Ecuador.

From Wikipedia...
The summit of Chimborazo is the fixed point on Earth that has the utmost distance from the center – because of the oblate spheroid shape of the planet Earth, which is thicker at the Equator than it is from pole to pole. Chimborazo is one degree south of the Equator and the Earth's diameter at the Equator is greater than at the latitude of Everest (8,848 m (29,029 ft) above sea level), nearly 28° north.

[RavVid]

It is unlikely the outer edge of the atmosphere is anything other than a spheroid in steady state is my first thought. Otherwise the column of air would higher or lower - and hence air pressure at ground would vary, and air would flow from higher to lower. But there are factors that could disturb this. I can think of some:-

We know that the volume of a gas expands with temperature so over warmer areas the air will be warmer. The lower part of the atmosphere is higher over the equator than the poles. But the troposphere is not where space starts.

The atmosphere is quite thin and very close to the earth and idealized center of gravity to be the center of the earth may not hold true so the less than spherical shape could be a factor and gravity does indeed vary over the earth. Plus we have tides which causes the ocean to bulge and the moon has to have a tidal effect on the atmosphere.

The earth is spinning so there is going to be some centripetal force acting.

But where the hell is space anyway? It's a bit vague as there will fewer and fewer air molecules the further and further out. Where is that last air molecule? Could solar winds affect this?

Fortunately it is defined by the Karman line at 100 Km above mean sea level. Handy to know where sovereign air space ends and open access space starts. Now because of centrifugal force the earth bulges at the equator and flattens at the poles with a radius of 6,378 km and 6,357 km for a whopping 21 Km difference. Everest is the highest mountain but is a reasonable way from the equator so that negates it's advantage. We need a tall mountain mountain on the equator.

Ahah! Mt Chimborazo is the highest place on earth. But it is not highest place above mean sea level which is still... Mt Everest! It is 2.221 Km higher above mean sea level and space is just 97.779 Km up

[RavVid]

Mt Chimborazo is the furthermost you be from the center of the earth however. Space is only 91.152 Km up. I got excited and used the height difference between the two mountains incorrectly.

[RavVid]

I thought the answer would be given as Mt Chimborazo but because the definition of Space is 100Km from mean sea level the furthermost you can be from the center of the earth is not the same thing.

Chimborazo beats the hell out of Everest by 2,072 m on furthermost from the center of the earth. But Everest beats the hell out of Chimborazo on being the highest from mean sea level by 2,221 m.

By the definition of space, Everest wins. If the question had been were on earth are you closest to the stars Chimborazo wins.

This has been a superb question Aviator Tom and like all good questions has disputable answers. Thank you I learnt quite a bit.

Here's a reference on which mountain is taller from National Ocean and Atmospheric Administration. They should know what they are on about and be authoritative.

oceanservice.noaa.gov/.../highestpoint.html

[Avicenna]

I'm pretty sure it's Mount Chimborazo due to it being right there by the equator and the Earth's spherical bulge at that point on the globe.

[Anonymous]

The earth is an oblate spheroid called the geoid.

In layman terms, the earth is a huge orange. It is thick at the center and inward near the poles. According to this representation, the closest point on Earth to space is not Everest. Rather it is Mount Chimborazo in the Andean Cordillera.

Mount Chimborazo is technically the highest mountain on earth when measured from the center making the closest point to space. The Himalayan Mountains are nowhere to be seen on the list.

[juliammm]

Mount Chimborazo, Ecuador

[OlderAndWiser]

Earth is an oblate spheroid, which means a sphere that was slightly squashed when a fat lady sat on it. Earth is further around at the Equator than it is when measured across both poles. The difference is enough to offset the above-sea-level advantage of Everest. Of your choices, the closest to the Equator is the mountain in Ecuador, so I would guess that is the point farthest from the core.

But would the atmosphere at the Equator also be bulged out so that I the oblate advantage was negated?

[AviatorTom]

If your logic is correct, the atmosphere above Chimborazo would be even closer. The atmosphere, and the air molecules in it, are kept in place by gravity, which is determined by the mass of the earth immediately below that portion of the atmosphere.. Since there would be more mass below it (the mountain), the atmosphere would be pulled down, a bit closer to Earth.

[OlderAndWiser]

That sounds like a reasonable hypothesis.

[WindAtMyBack]

I won't give a spoiler since I looked it up. I'll just say I voted wrong. My 50+ year old memory from elementary school didn't serve me well. I was thinking the Earth was slightly pyramid shape. Well, maybe it is but there is another factor that's bigger.

There is also a question about the center of the Earth. That could be defined in different ways. Like the center of gyration is not necessarily the same as the midpoint of the axis of rotation. Most likely neither one is in the plane defined by the equator. There is also the centroid, which is different than the center of gyration. That won't be in the plane defined by the equator either. Plus the Earth wobble.

Then there is the matter of how you define space. "The final frontier" doesn't count.

Anyway, the study of the shape of the Earth, it's orientation, gravity etc is called "geodesy".

[goaded]

""The final frontier" doesn't count." Of course it does! It comes from the aliens who can hear from their foreheads!

[ArrowheadSW]

Well, I'd think the top of the highest mountain. But I'm wondering if it is a bit more complicated than that. It might be a combination of being a high mountain, and close to the equator. If I recall, I think the earth bulges a bit at the equator?

[ChiTown33]

I was going to say Nepal since Mt. Everest is the highest mountain on earth. But I feel like this is a trick question and you're going to say "Ecuador because it's not only high elevation but being near the equator and since the Earth bulges at the equator it puts it closer to space". or something like that.🤣

[abc3643]

I think it's the ALT key although the C, V, B, N, and M keys are equally close for me.

[abc3643]

Seriously, I know the answer and voted but otherwise will keep my mouth shut.

[Lliam]

I think it's Mt. Chimborazo because it sits at the equator and the Earth is wider at the equator, which means that places on the equator are furthest from the Earth's center.

[goaded]

I voted tallest mountain, but @msc545's answer got me thinking: the atmosphere will be even more bulging at the equator than the ground, so it's probably one of the poles. Since the south is the one that's not just floating on water, I'll say that one.

[goaded]

Excellent question, by the way!

[goaded]

"The troposphere is the lowest layer of Earth's atmosphere. It extends from Earth's surface to an average height of about 12 km (7.5 mi; 39,000 ft), although this altitude varies from about 9 km (5.6 mi; 30,000 ft) at the geographic poles to 17 km (11 mi; 56,000 ft) at the Equator,[21]"
So, is "furthest from the centre" the same as "closest to space"? Meh, yes, it probably is, the "Kármán line" is defined as a distance from mean sea level.

Anyway, the judge has spoken, and I was wrong (twice!).

[MicroJ]

I believe Mt. Chimborazo, even though it's some 8,000 ft shorter than Everest.

[nolabels]

By your definition of what is closest to space, Mount Chimborazo, Ecuador.

[AmandaYVR]

I have no friggin idea!

Here's one for y'all:

Which of these animals has the highest blood pressure?

A. Hummingbird

B. Giraffe

C. Cheetah

D. Elephant

[AviatorTom]

Without looking it up, I would guess a Giraffe. Gotta pump the blood all the way up that long neck, So... B... final answer.

[AmandaYVR]

You so smart. 🎖

[Massageman]

The spin of the Earth on its axis does create an "equatorial bulge". So on that basis, it would be Chimborazo.

[goaded]

How about the polar "dent"?

[Red-Blaze]

All spots as anything that is not litrelly earth is in space, and the earth is not space becouse there is earth there, dig in and now its space as well

[boobliker]

as a spinning ball go to any high hill and it is as close as you can be cheap as it like a wheel the high spots will be on a lower orbit around the centre point

[FunkyMonkee]

If it's not Everest, it's either the east or west pole.

[nolabels]

Lol.

[FunkyMonkee]

@nolabels Well, you know, the world is wider at the equator.

[nolabels]

That's true.

I was messing with you.

[nolabels]

There's more to the question than that, though.

[FunkyMonkee]

@nolabels Did you ever see a monkey wrench?
Did you ever see a house fly?
Did you ever see a soup bowl?
Did you ever watch a cereal box?
Did you ever see a gorilla glue?
Did you ever se the moon walk?

[nolabels]

Yes.
Yes.
Yes.
Yes.
No.
No.

It appears that I have something to live for!

[FunkyMonkee]

"the latitude of Everest"? don't they mean, altitude?

[nolabels]

No, he's talking about the diameter of the earth at the latitude where Everest is located being smaller than the diameter of earth at the equator, as you first mentioned.

[FunkyMonkee]

@nolabels /Yes, the Earth is fatter at the middle than where Everest is but, that would mean that mountain would have a greater altitude than Everest. Why would the latitude matter?

[nolabels]

We know that the diameter of the earth at the equator is "x", and the diameter of the earth at the poles is somewhat smaller at the poles, which we'll call "y". The diameter of the earth at the location of Everest, which is at latitude 28 degrees north, is sufficiently less than it is at the equator to make Everest closer to the center of the earth than Chimborazo.

The diameter of the earth at Everest would be from 28 degrees North on one side of the earth to 28 degrees South on the other side of the earth.

Is it possible that you're envisioning just the latitude line 28 degrees North itself (which has nothing to do with the equation), and not the diameter of the earth from 28N on one side to 28S on the other?

[FunkyMonkee]

@nolabels Yes but, in either case, what does it matter? Chimborazo is closer to space than Everest so, the ALTITUDE is greater than that of Everest.

[nolabels]

It all depends on what you're measuring and from where to where.

Calculated from sea level, Everest is at a higher altitude than Chimborazo.
Calculated from the center of the earth, Chimborazo is at a higher altitude than Everest.

The latitude of the two different points is what makes that difference.

[LiamJHayden]

Trick question. The entire planet is already in space. lol

But okay, I understand what you meant. Mount Chimborazo.

[Anonymous]

Everest is said to be the tallest mountain, but Chimborazo’s summit is said to be the farthest from Earth’s center. I don’t understand the difference.

[msc545]

Chimborazo peak, Ecuador

[goaded]

Because of the bulge at the equator?

[goaded]

Wait, but the atmosphere will also bulge there, probably more than the ground!

[msc545]

The bulge yes

[Billlewis]

Mount Everest, right?

[MihirLopez]

因为它是最突出的一点

[dolemite58]

id assume everest or kilimanjaro

[Hithere4567]

Mauna Kea

[TheSpaceGnome]

Everest.

[TheSpaceGnome]

Interesting.
Nice to learn something new on here for once, good question.

[TheSpaceGnome]

Now I'm wondering about the height of the atmosphere per area and how much that varies.

[Wise4myage]

Mount Everest.

[AngryCarl2]

The surface.

[Christoff92]

I believe Africa 😀