Why do we not feel the motion of Earth in space?

By Irina K. Romanovskaya

As Earth orbits the Sun, it’s traveling at a speed of 108,000 kilometers per hour, or 67,000 miles per hour. That’s like traveling from Los Angeles to New York in just a couple of minutes! And if you do the math, that means every single day, Earth travels astounding 2.6 million kilometers (1.6 million miles) in its cosmic journey around the Sun.

As we go about our daily lives, we are unaware of this constant motion of Earth in space, for the ride is so smooth that we cannot feel it. We only feel motion when it changes, such as the sensation of being pressed back into one’s seat during the acceleration of an airplane at takeoff or pushed forward upon deceleration during landing. But when the airplane is in flight at a constant velocity, we do not perceive its motion.

Of course, in the real world, there are the occasional bumps and jolts of turbulence to remind us of the airplane’s motion, but such disturbances are a far cry from the smooth and steady journey of Earth as it orbits the Sun. That’s because the vast expanse of space between the planets in our Solar System is almost empty.

So, the next time you’re looking up at the stars, remember that we are all passengers on a cosmic ride, as our planet is hurtling through space at an incredible speed.

Copyright © Irina K. Romanovskaya. All rights reserved.