Is the earth flat?

Lens adapted to this topic: The evidence for a spherical Earth

Mainstream scientific and institutional accounts conclude that Earth is approximately spherical. They rely on mutually reinforcing evidence: different shadows and star motions at different locations, the behavior of objects near the horizon, circumnavigation, geodesy, and direct observations from spacecraft and satellites.

• Ancient observations of shadows and stellar motions, together with later navigation, supported a spherical Earth before the space age.
• Satellite and spacecraft photographs, plus Earth- and space-based measurements, repeatedly confirm Earth’s spherical shape and rotation.
• The curvature of Earth is also reflected in how distant objects disappear over the horizon and in other everyday observations.
• Physical oceanographers describe flat-Earth claims as inconsistent with established oceanographic, atmospheric, geophysical, and gravity measurements.

Lens adapted to this topic: Claims made against this, and what the evidence says

Flat-Earth advocates argue that personal observations can appear inconsistent with curvature and question whether imagery or institutional explanations are trustworthy. Their position is represented in advocacy and discussion sources rather than the scientific consensus. Available evidence-based reviews report that these objections do not provide a coherent alternative model that explains the full range of measurements.

• Some advocates point to apparently visible distant objects, a seemingly level horizon, and water that appears flat as reasons to reject curvature.
• Some flat-Earth accounts claim that space imagery is fabricated, manipulated, or insufficient to establish Earth’s shape.
• The movement commonly proposes a disk bounded by an Antarctic ice rim and explains contrary evidence through optical effects or alleged restrictions.
• Reviews of these claims conclude that observations and geometric calculations contradict flat-Earth interpretations, including claims based on personal visual experience.