Abstract
The equation for plumb line deviation currently presented in textbooks ignores the effect of earth's flattening on the direction of true gravitational acceleration and is incorrect by nearly a factor of 2. The correct equation is consistent with the shape and dimensions of the earth with a very high degree of accuracy. The simple treatment of the problem uses Newton's second law in an inertial reference system and is suitable for introductory physics courses.
| Original language | English (US) |
|---|---|
| Pages (from-to) | 1038-1041 |
| Number of pages | 4 |
| Journal | American Journal of Physics |
| Volume | 68 |
| Issue number | 11 |
| DOIs | |
| State | Published - Nov 2000 |
ASJC Scopus subject areas
- General Physics and Astronomy