Question

Read the diagrams and answer the questions.

1. Why does the pole appear higher in one case while the same pole appears lower in the other?
2. Which of the two is the real life situation?

Answer 1

1. The pole appears higher in one case and lower in the other because of the shape of the Earth’s surface. On the spherical surface of the Earth, the pole appears higher due to the curvature of the Earth. Whereas on a flat surface, the pole appears lower because the line of sight is straight and does not follow the curvature. This difference in appearance is due to Earth’s spherical shape, causing objects to appear differently depending on the observer’s position relative to the curve.
2. The real-life situation is the one shown on the spherical surface of the Earth, because the Earth is actually spherical and not flat. The Earth’s curved shape causes such visual differences as shown in the first diagram, unlike the flat surface representation in the second diagram which is an idealized, non-real scenario.

These conclusions come from the explanation related to the shapes and appearances of objects on Earth’s surface, emphasizing the Earth’s spherical nature and its effects on observation.