But a plane is not “on earth”?
Comment on The End of an Era
TheTechnician27@lemmy.world 1 month agoThe limit of space is widely defined as 100 km, which no commercial plane even nearly crosses.
Eheran@lemmy.world 1 month ago
TheTechnician27@lemmy.world 1 month ago
Extremely pedantically, sure. But under that level of pedantry, the whole metric falls apart anyway because there’s surely never or rarely been a point in human history where someone hasn’t jumped/fallen (let alone this having been measurable). What about “touching”; your feet are just repelling the ground via electromagnetism.
It’s really obvious what the metric is, and trying to pedant-proof it isn’t worth bloating it into a mouthful. We can just recognize what it obviously means, say “oh, neat”, and move on with our day.
Rolder@reddthat.com 1 month ago
Does it really count as being “on earth” if you’re standing on a floor instead of having your feet directly touch the dirt?
Tiresia@slrpnk.net 1 month ago
The last time everybody was touching a solid object connected to the Earth by touching other solid objects is probably around 15,000 years ago, when humans crossed over into the Americas. Before then, it would probably occur regularly that nearly all humans are asleep and the handful that are awake happen to all be touching the ground.
davidgro@lemmy.world 1 month ago
I guess you could count the atmosphere as part of earth, then things over 100km are in little enough of the atmosphere that it’s not really ‘touching’ it the same way. (For example not generating significant lift)
Eheran@lemmy.world 1 month ago
You could also count earth’s gravitational field, then nobody ever left it.
hemko@lemmy.dbzer0.com 1 month ago
Yeah that’s called Kármán line, but it’s just arbitrary line. ISS is still orbiting within Earth’s thermosphere
lauha@lemmy.world 1 month ago
Yes, definitions are arbitrary but that is the definition of space.
hemko@lemmy.dbzer0.com 1 month ago
One can be simultaneously on earth, and in space. In fact we all are
But I’m just arguing that while orbiting earth and being within the Earth’s atmosphere, it’s pretty much still on Earth. Just like you’re still at home even if you’re at the on the yard or even just outside the gate picking up mail from the mailbox. Looking at it from distance, it really doesn’t make difference
Tyrq@lemmy.dbzer0.com 1 month ago
I’m also orbiting the sun, ergo, I am a planet
TheTechnician27@lemmy.world 1 month ago
What does “ISS” stand for again? I forgot.
Goodlucksil@lemmy.dbzer0.com 1 month ago
Imperial Starship. Wait, wrong comm.
TaTTe@lemmy.world 1 month ago
Islamic State of Syria
FundMECFS@piefed.zip 1 month ago
International Space Station
ilinamorato@lemmy.world 1 month ago
The Karman Line’s lowest theoretical point is still substantially higher up than commercial airplanes and its highest is substantially lower than the ISS. Most nations agree on it as the boundary for the purposes of law and regulation. Commercial airplanes fly about half as high as the line, while spacecraft orbit at four times its altitude or more.
It may be scientifically arbitrary, but it’s got a lot going for it as a rough approximation.
chunes@lemmy.world 1 month ago
My favorite fact is that earth’s atmosphere extends 95,000 miles / 150,000 km beyond the moon.
hemko@lemmy.dbzer0.com 1 month ago
I couldn’t find any source for that, but exosphere is considered to extend to 10,000km or 190,000km, from which the latter is about halfway to the moon.
Anyways those numbers are pretty damn tiny even on a small solar system scale
BuboScandiacus@mander.xyz 1 month ago
Thank you for the accents
rmuk@feddit.uk 1 month ago
Hére, håvē ßòmê mõrë.