January 8th Earth’s Rotation Day: Motion, Time and Life…

The fact that the Earth rotates around its own axis was proven hundreds of years after Copernicus put forward this idea. But do you know the story behind this information? In 1851, a large number of people gathered in front of the Pantheon in France. Among the people gathered were artists, scientists and ordinary citizens. This is where the event that led to the celebration of January 8th as Earth’s Rotation Day took place. Let’s take a look at the story of Earth’s Rotation Day together.

 

The Day of the Earth’s Rotation: Léon Foucault and His Pendulum

In early 1851, French physicist Léon Foucault wanted to prove that the Earth rotates on its own axis. To do this, he hung a brass sphere from the top of the Pantheon, a temple dedicated to all the gods in Paris. This sphere, which would later be called “Foucault’s Pendulum,” would circle the ground in a small arc and take 16 seconds to complete a cycle.

It was not possible to instantly notice that the pendulum changed direction with each swing. A certain amount of time had to pass in order to notice the change. Foucault had a very good idea to make the audience notice this change in direction. He placed a pin under the sphere and put sand on the ground. In other words, a different groove opened up in the sand with each swing of the sphere.

What Foucault showed with his pendulum experiment is that the plane of the pendulum is actually fixed. What is rotating here is the pendulum and the Earth beneath our feet. Foucault proved that the Earth rotates around its own axis exactly 308 years after Copernicus first proposed the idea that the Earth rotates. January 8th, Earth’s Rotation Day, is celebrated as the anniversary of this event.

The pendulum that Léon Foucault used in 1851 can be seen in a special box in the Musée des Arts et Métiers in Paris today. A replica of the pendulum is exhibited in the Pantheon where the experiment was conducted.

 

Foucault’s Pendulum: A Mysterious Connection from Science to Literature

This experiment, conducted by Foucault in 1851, not only proved the rotation of the Earth around its own axis. It also became a source of inspiration for the literary world. For example, the name of Foucault’s Pendulum by world-famous author Umberto Eco comes from here. However, the book is not directly about the rotation of the Earth around its own axis. The author focuses more on occult teachings, conspiracy theories and mystical symbols.

Umberto Eco uses Foucault’s Pendulum as a metaphor in this famous work. Discussing esoteric texts and historical documents, the book brings together science and art while also blending reality and fiction. Inspired by Léon Foucault’s scientific work, the pendulum metaphor in this work symbolizes not only a physical oscillation but also the complex oscillations of human consciousness and history. Humanity’s search for meaning and the idea that everything is interconnected are among the meanings that can be attributed to the pendulum metaphor in Eco’s work.

January 8th, Earth’s Rotation Day, offers an opportunity to commemorate not only Léon Foucault’s scientific work but also Umberto Eco, who passed away on February 19th, 2016.

 

A Night at Pera Palace on Earth’s Rotation Day!

Hosting countless names from Mata Hari to Greta Garbo, Alfred Hitchcock to Pierre Loti, Pera Palace Hotel has also hosted Umberto Eco. Umberto Eco, who left behind important works such as Foucault’s Pendulum as well as The Name of the Rose and History of Beauty, stayed at the Pera Palace Hotel during his visits to İstanbul in 1998 and 2013. Pera Palace Hotel, which has defied history with its history of over 100 years, has hosted literary legends such as Ernest Hemingway and Agatha Christie, as well as Umberto Eco.

If you would like to experience the Earth’s Rotation Day in the unmatched atmosphere of Pera Palace Hotel, you can contact us to make a reservation.