# Space exploration

By [Dariia](https://paragraph.com/@dariia) · 2023-04-18

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Space has always been of interest to mankind since ancient times. We have always looked at the stars, observed the moon and the sun, and dreamed of flying into space. However, space exploration is not limited to observations. One of the questions we have always been interested in is the shape of the Earth. And although we know today that the Earth is geoidal, many people continue to believe that it is round.

This idea of the Earth's shape has existed since ancient times. As early as the fifth century BC, the ancient Greeks came to the conclusion that the Earth was spherical. The spread of this idea contributed to the discovery of America by Columbus, who proposed to make such a journey based on the assumption that the Earth is spherical. If he had thought the Earth was flat, he would never have been able to reach his goal.

Unfortunately, despite what we know about the Earth's shape, there are still people who believe it is flat. This notion is reinforced by numerous conspiracy theories and videos on the Internet that mislead people. However, if we look at this issue from a scientific point of view, the answer is quite simple: the Earth is geoidal.

A geoid is the shape of the Earth that most closely matches the average shape of the Earth's surface. This means that the Earth is not completely spherical, as many people think. The Earth is mostly a circle

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*Originally published on [Dariia](https://paragraph.com/@dariia/space-exploration)*