Flat Earth

Does the Coriolis effect fail to affect aircraft trajectory, which proves that the Earth is flat, as is implied in a video shared on social media? No, that's not true: A professor emeritus of physics and astronomy told Lead Stories that "the Coriolis effect is, of course, well known and thoroughly analyzed." Though airplanes experience Coriolis force, it is "pretty…

Is the site known as Giant's Causeway on the coast of Northern Ireland actually a giant petrified armadillo, visible from the air? No, that's not true: The unusual geometric rock formations seen at Giant's Causeway are basalt columns, which, according to experts, take their shape from the way molten volcanic basalt lava shrinks as it cools. Some stone surfaces resemble…

Does footage on social media show Israelis panicking and running after Iranian missiles and drones hit Israel's airspace April 13, 2024? No, that's not true: The footage had already been on social media for a week when Iran attacked Israel. It shows a crowd running on April 6, 2024 toward the Four Seasons hotel in Buenos Aires, Argentina, where former…

Do long-distance photos, showing things up to hundreds of miles away, provide evidence that the Earth is not curved? No, that's not true: Photos of faraway objects might appear flat because of Earth's large size, not because Earth itself is flat. While the Earth's surface does curve in these photos, it may not be noticeable due to the vast scale…

Do "practical calculations" prove that the United Nations grossly overestimates the size of the world's total population? No, that's not true: The claim derives from a flat-earther's speculations. They ignore the fact that people living in rural areas in India account for two-thirds of the country's overall population. The claim appeared in a post (archived here) on Instagram on February…

Are there secret, hidden pyramids in Bosnia that are older and taller than the Egyptian pyramids? No, that's not true: An archaeologist who is an expert on the Balkans told Lead Stories that the claims have been circulating for nearly 20 years and are not true. The massive hills near Visoko in Bosnia are not secret pyramids; they are natural…

Does a video of Mars filmed with a Nikon p1000 camera prove that Hubble Space Telescope images of Mars are fake, and that Mars is not really a planet but a shining star that looks like "light shimmering in water"? No, that's not true: Images of Mars can vary considerably depending on the equipment, settings and atmospheric conditions. The resulting…

Is the International Space Station (ISS) in a swimming pool? No, that's not true: The ISS is in space, orbiting Earth, contrary to images on social media referring to the ISS as "International Swimming Station". The images show NASA's Neutral Buoyancy Laboratory with a full-size mock-up of the space station. It includes a large pool with technology used for training…

Does a photo show Elon Musk reading a book titled "The Flat-Earth Conspiracy"? No, that's not true: The image in the post has been digitally altered. The photo, which originated from another author's official social media page, displays Musk reading a book with a different cover and title. The claim appeared in a post on X, formerly known as Twitter,…

Did a "lead developer at Google Earth" say he believes the Earth is flat? No, that's not true: This claim originated from a 2017 article that Lead Stories was unable to verify as being authentic. We could not find any evidence that a lead developer at Google ever publicly said this or that a lead developer was ever suspended from…