Is it possible to drive a car around the world so that you will always be travelling in the daytime?

Question

Another way to word this question:

Is it possible that the speed of the car can be fast enough to keep up with the moving sun?

Answer 1

Theoretically, Yes.  But the car would REALLY have to be moving to keep up with the daylight, and you would have to be driving west because the sun lights the Earths surface from east to west, so sundown comes from the east.

Oh, another little detail, I am pretty sure the car would have to float because of the oceans.

Taking into account terrain and current technology, I would say that it is (currently) not possible.

It would be kinda cool to try though wouldn't it?

Answer 2

Well, oceans kinda get in the way.  And the only place you could drive fast enough would be in the polar regions.  And the north pole in summer is not a good place to try to drive, so now we're down to the south pole.

If the ice was flat enough, you could drive in a circle around the south pole, say at a distance of 200 miles.  At a leisurely pace of 26 miles an hour, you would be traveling westward at the same speed the ground is rotating eastward.  But now the question becomes trivial because that close to the pole, the sun rises and sets only once a year!  The closest you could come to meeting your condidions is that you would be able to keep the sun at the same angle to you, the whole time you're driving.  Since it will never get very far away from the horizon, better start with it behind you.

But let's be honest.  That really isn't like "driving around the world," is it?  You would go through all 24 time zones, though.

Answer 3

Yes.  If you define "around the world" as following a circular path a constant ten miles from the south pole, you can certainly drive the 63 miles in 24 hours, and have the sun constantly shining in your left (or right) window -- near the solstice.  But don't try this near the Equator unless you have access to a SR-71 aircraft, as supersonic speed would be required.

Answer 4

The Earth's circumference is about 25000 miles. All you need is a car that can do in excess of 1000 mph, and you can!

Answer 5

Even my Mustang isn't that fast!

Answer 6

Yes, if you were able to do it at a high enough latitude.

At the equator, the sun goes at a speed of 1,040 miles per hour.  No car, nor any commercial aircraft for that matter, can travel at this speed.  Space craft, on the other hand, move at many times the speed of the sun, so the astronauts actually outrun the sun and have multiple "days" every 24 hours.

As you get closer to the poles, the lines of longitude get closer together, but the sun still takes 24 hours to go around.  At 45 degrees latitude, the sun has slowed to about 725 mph, still too fast, but a good deal slower than at the equator, and the solar "braking" becomes more pronounced the closer you get to the poles.

At 70 degrees latitude, the sun is moving at about 350 mph, slow enough that a commercial aircraft can easily outrun it.  At 80 degrees, the sun's speed is 175 mph, comparable to the speed of a race car.

If you were in a race with the sun at 85 degrees latitude, the sun moves at just 93 miles an hour.  Most cars will go that fast.  Assuming the existence of a beltway following the 85th parallel all the way around, you should be able to get around ahead of the sun.

This would be impractical today, because the arctic is ocean and the south pole is uninhabited and ice bound.  However, ice sheets at the poles are a very new thing in terms of the earth's history, and a few million years ago there were none at all.  Supposing that it were possible to have had vehicles back then (or it you wait long enough until the end of the Quaternary Period) it would be theoretically possible.

Answer 7

No, the Sun is not moving, it's Earth.

Answer 8

the sun is moving... ... all the planet is moving, our solar system planet is circling the sun... ... and the sun is going around the centre of our galaxy...the milky way,,,1 cosmic year 1 round which is 225 million years..!so its possiple to be travelling in daylight if your fast enough!

Answer 9

No, besides the fact there are no cars that can travel that fast (to out run the speed of the earths rotation) the oceans would prevent you from driving around the world anyway....

Answer 10

LOL no

Answer 11

Well I'm not sure but you can't drive your car around the whole world because you would run into a lot of obstacles...and all the continents aren't connected...unless there's some really long bridge I haven't heard of haha