Why do planes not cross the pacific ocean

I imagine taking a vacation somewhere far away, ideally somewhere exotic and thrilling! Korea? Japan, perhaps? Wonderful cuisine, amazing culture, and lots of opportunities to make oneself look foolish by misinterpreting regional customs. Is there anything not to love?

But while I was making my travel arrangements to Asia, I discovered something odd. It appears like my aircraft is deviating above Alaska. My airline is making special efforts to avoid flying over the Pacific Ocean. Why? Is something wrong here? Did I unintentionally sign up for the trip to Caribou? You might initially believe it to be a safety concern. Of all the oceans in the world, the Pacific is the biggest and deepest.

A plane's pilots will have a difficult time locating a safe place to land if an issue arises over an apparently bottomless and infinite pond of water. Alaska might not be overpopulated with international airports, but it’s a lot better than the middle of the ocean. What a catchphrase for tourism, eh? "Alaska, it is better than sinking, at least!” Alright, I apologize to Alaska. Presuming that it was a preventive measure wouldn't be wholly incorrect.

Many pilots want to use as many airports as possible along their route while planning. Considering the number of planes that travel to the skies every day, emergencies are extremely infrequent. However, I can't imagine many situations more nerve-wracking than having an engine fail 30,000 feet over the Pacific Ocean. However, this isn't the primary cause of airlines' reluctance to fly directly from east to west. It all boils down to saving time and gasoline in the end.

It's simple to overlook the fact that an airline is a company. a company whose ability to transfer passengers between locations promptly and affordably determines how much money it makes. In addition, people want to reach their next destination as soon as possible, thus it benefits both travelers and airlines. In short, while this is not my specialty, an airplane's speed is typically the main factor that determines its flight route. With the exception of unique situations like traveling through jet streams or other weather-related issues, the fastest route is nearly always the one that approaches a straight line. It's not even close to a straight line, if you look at that flight route! Yes, it does appear that way on a flat map. However, our world isn't flat anymore, is it? Since we're accustomed to seeing the world in two dimensions, it can be perplexing.

You most likely look at a world map unless you pull out a globe every time you need to find the location of a city or nation. Hence, creating a massive rainbow to avoid the Pacific Ocean appears to be a significantly longer route on a 2D map. However, as the Earth is a sphere (well, sort of; more on that later), the appearance of a straight line in three dimensions will alter significantly. Alright, let's carry out a quick test. Have a globe close by? Yes, I just mentioned that the majority of us use Google Maps. Okay, let me show you on my now. I'll tie Tokyo on one end of a string and Los Angeles on the other. You'll see that the thread isn't exactly parallel to the latitude lines engraved on the globe when I pull it taught. Rather, it will veer slightly upwards to conform to the curvature of this miniature Earth that I purchased from the nearby bookstore.

In actuality, this impact is even more noticeable because my globe isn't an exact replica of the genuine one. Actually, the over-perfectionism is the issue! You see, the Earth isn't a perfect sphere like a globe is. Like me after the holidays, our globe is little larger in the middle! Who wrote that, again? Laugh! The difference is negligible when compared to images captured from space. Because of the planet's immense size, it can be simple to get lost in a few hundred kilometers here and there.

However, consider this: 24,860 miles of string would be required to measure the circumference of the Earth through the poles using a big piece of string. However, the identical calculation at the equator would result in a 24,900-mile increase. You may wonder why that is. Our globe revolves on its axis, which explains why. Have you ever spun around erratically on a playground merry-go-round as a child? Do you recall feeling as though the object was going to push you aside? No, I recall that I was frequently throwing up. Not my kind of ride. In any case, the Earth's middle bulges out due to a similar phenomenon that occurs when it spins. Sure, it spins quickly enough to accomplish that! Anyone tuning in from the equator right now is traveling at a speed of around 1,000 miles per hour! It may not seem like much, yet the Earth's width varies by 40 miles.

But that tiny amount of extra girth might add up to a lot when it comes to a planet's total surface area. The Earth's curvature and extra equatorial width—how neat is that—combine to make curving toward the poles a shorter route than traveling (what appears to be) "straight" across on a map! This is not to argue that aircraft never fly across the Pacific. Somehow, people must travel to Australia! I suppose... Giant insects and spiders don't really appeal to me, but anyway, to each his own! I'm kidding, Australia! In any case, in order to avoid storms, planes will also fly over open sea.

Though some forms of extreme weather, such hurricanes and tropical storms, are easily outclimbed by aircraft, even seemingly insignificant thunderstorms may be quite difficult! Aircraft are urged to maneuver around clouds rather than into or over them, as clouds can reach altitudes of over 60,000 feet. strong weather bringing down an airplane is practically unheard of, but strong enough turbulence can injure both crew and passengers as they are thrown around the cabin along with all of their belongings. The important lesson to learn from this is to always wear your seatbelt. Sometimes, planes may brave an oceanic flight in order to benefit from the smoother ride.

Over water, there is significantly less turbulence than over land, even in clear weather. This is due to the fact that hot air rising from the earth is the main cause of turbulence. Hello, this microphone is emitting a lot of hot air! Flights over the ocean are frequently significantly smoother because water distributes heat far better than dirt does. Air currents, particularly the jet streams, are the other main factor taken into account while choosing flight routes. These air currents at high altitudes are located close to the troposphere's summit.

That is the Earth's lowest atmosphere and the layer where most weather happens. The tropopause is the boundary separating the troposphere from the stratosphere, the layer above. Its height varies from 4 to 12 miles above the surface of the Earth. This variation causes the air pressure and temperature to change quickly, creating a wind tunnel that can travel at speeds of more than 200 mph! Though typical wind speeds of 80 to 140 mph are nothing to laugh at, these extreme speeds are more common in the winter when the temperature difference is largest! Thus, don't bother scoffing to others! Because of the Earth's rotation, there are four main jet streams—two in each hemisphere—and they primarily run from west to east. The polar jet stream, which forms close to the arctic circle, and the subtropical jet stream, which forms near the equator, are the two most significant for air transport.

Despite just being a few miles wide, both are thousands of miles long. Flying into a jet stream can cause the plane to slow down significantly, but flying with one can cut a trip's duration by several hours. It's important to be aware of the dangers posed by jet streams. Clear-air turbulence, which forms along the borders of the streams, is the main source of danger.

This type of turbulence is significantly more powerful than the typical form and is almost hard to predict. Accidents caused by turbulence are uncommon, although they can happen. A jet traveling from Tokyo to Honolulu experienced a particularly dangerous occurrence in 1997 when it abruptly descended after encountering a period of clear-air turbulence. The pilots managed to recover control, but the abrupt drop had knocked a number of passengers violently out of their seats. Flight plans must be carefully designed to take advantage of the jet streams without endangering the aircraft in light of this risk. Remember to always use your seat belts when flying.

It frequently boils down to facts we don't commonly consider in our daily lives to explain why planes take the paths they do. The Earth's curvature is mainly insignificant unless you are going hundreds of miles per hour over extremely long distances, and the jet stream mostly affects objects tens of thousands of feet in the air. Neither of those things are anything my car can quite handle, I don't know about you. Not yet, anyhow. I've got some concepts. Hey, if you picked up any new knowledge today,leave a comment for me in the comments section.