You don't need to traverse a great circle route. You merely need to calculate direct routes between any 3 points more than 2000 miles apart. Anyone with a boat can do this. You can even do it with flight planning software and just fly small pieces to prove the route is correct. You will quickly realize the interior angles add up to more than 180 degrees, meaning the surface of the earth is positively curved in that region. And since this works between any 3 points, the earth can only be some kind of spheroid.
It ain't flat. There is no lie or conspiracy. You don't need a picture of Antarctica to prove this. You just need to know basic math. If you are truly an aeronautical engineer and don't know this...I sure hope I never have to fly in any aircraft you designed.
Pick ANY 3 points at least 2000 miles apart. Use flight planning software to draw a triangle with a direct route between each them. Measure the interior angles of that triangle. (i.e. the incoming vector minus the outgoing vector). When you add them, they will be more than 180 degrees. Irrefutable conclusion: the earth is a spheroid.
I do not have any flight planning software handy. I used to a couple years back, but I haven't been flying in a while. You claim to be an aeronautical engineer. Surely one of your friends has access to a piece of software you can use to convince yourself of this.
You don't need to traverse a great circle route. You merely need to calculate direct routes between any 3 points more than 2000 miles apart. Anyone with a boat can do this. You can even do it with flight planning software and just fly small pieces to prove the route is correct. You will quickly realize the interior angles add up to more than 180 degrees, meaning the surface of the earth is positively curved in that region. And since this works between any 3 points, the earth can only be some kind of spheroid.
It ain't flat. There is no lie or conspiracy. You don't need a picture of Antarctica to prove this. You just need to know basic math. If you are truly an aeronautical engineer and don't know this...I sure hope I never have to fly in any aircraft you designed.
Can you please give me an example of your "3 points 2000 miles apart thought experiment" so that I can better visualize what you're describing?
Seriously? I wasn't clear?
Pick ANY 3 points at least 2000 miles apart. Use flight planning software to draw a triangle with a direct route between each them. Measure the interior angles of that triangle. (i.e. the incoming vector minus the outgoing vector). When you add them, they will be more than 180 degrees. Irrefutable conclusion: the earth is a spheroid.
I do not have any flight planning software handy. I used to a couple years back, but I haven't been flying in a while. You claim to be an aeronautical engineer. Surely one of your friends has access to a piece of software you can use to convince yourself of this.