# falling
**URL:** https://boards.straightdope.com/t/falling/430054
**Category:** Factual Questions
**Created:** [December 15, 2007, 12:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/falling/430054 "2007-12-15T00:25:36Z")
**Posts on this page:** 8
**Page:** 1
### Author:  [@whothaplaya](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/whothaplaya)
#### Post date: [December 15, 2007, 12:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/falling/430054/1 "2007-12-15T00:25:36Z")
if you dig a hole you will fall in it but if there was a way to dig a whole straight through the earth would you float right in the middle of the earth because you would be falling then once you pass through the core you would be going up not falling
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### Author:  [@Tenebras](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tenebras)
#### Post date: [December 15, 2007, 12:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/falling/430054/2 "2007-12-15T00:28:52Z")
You should just ask her out already.
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### Author:  [@Lemur866](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lemur866)
#### Post date: [December 15, 2007, 12:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/falling/430054/3 "2007-12-15T00:30:25Z")
If you went to the center of the earth you would be weightless. But if you fell to the center of the earth, you’d still have some velocity and you’d overshoot the center of the earth. If there were no friction, you’d fall up exactly as far as you fell down. But there is friction. And also the earth is rotating, so you’d bump against the side of the hole pretty quickly. That’s gonna leave a bruise.
If you’re just falling in a real life tunnel with air, your terminal velocity is about 120 mph. Now, what’s the density gradient of air as you go down the tunnel? How insulated are the sides of the tunnel, and how do you keep if from melting from the heat of the earth’s core? And so on, mere engineering details.
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### Author:  [@coffinjumper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/coffinjumper)
#### Post date: [December 15, 2007, 12:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/falling/430054/4 "2007-12-15T00:32:06Z")
If you fell into the center of the Earth you’d be dead from the heat and pressure, so falling two directions wouldn’t really be a problem.
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### Author:  [@JimOfAllTrades](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JimOfAllTrades)
#### Post date: [December 15, 2007, 12:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/falling/430054/5 "2007-12-15T00:36:12Z")
[QUOTE=whothaplaya]
if you dig a hole you will fall in it but if there was a way to dig a whole straight through the earth would you float right in the middle of the earth because you would be falling then once you pass through the core you would be going up not falling
[/QUOTE]
As with many other things, Unca Cec has addressed this in one of his columns. Check out this link:
[http://www.straightdope.com/classics/a1\_165.html](http://www.straightdope.com/classics/a1_165.html)
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### Author:  [@whothaplaya](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/whothaplaya)
#### Post date: [December 15, 2007, 12:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/falling/430054/6 "2007-12-15T00:38:46Z")
[QUOTE=RJKUgly]
As with many other things, Unca Cec has addressed this in one of his columns. Check out this link:
[http://www.straightdope.com/classics/a1\_165.html](http://www.straightdope.com/classics/a1_165.html)
[/QUOTE]
thanks
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### Author:  [@Xema](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Xema)
#### Post date: [December 15, 2007, 2:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/falling/430054/7 "2007-12-15T02:08:57Z")
[QUOTE=Lemur866]
And also the earth is rotating, so you’d bump against the side of the hole pretty quickly.
[/QUOTE]
This problem is generally solved by digging the hole from one pole to the other. (Some of the others aren’t quite as easy to get around.)
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### Author:  [@jackdavinci](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jackdavinci)
#### Post date: [December 15, 2007, 6:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/falling/430054/8 "2007-12-15T18:55:13Z")
This is basically the same thing as a pendulum.