wymike on Nostr: If I push a candle in a direction and it’s not in a closed container the flame will ...

If I push a candle in a direction and it’s not in a closed container the flame will not move in the direction of the force. Anyone who has ever carried anything with a flame on it will tell you that is true.

This phenomenon is caused by the flame being in the sealed container. From the candles point of view the earth is accelerating towards it. From the earths point of view the candle (+the jar and air inside) is accelerating towards it. The physics that explain both are the same. Therefore we have to look at other factors to decide which is actually happening. Is the earth moving up to meet the container or is the container moving down to meet the earth. Since we know from many observations that the earth is a sphere, unless it is expanding it cannot be moving ‘up’ in every direction at the same time. If the earth was expanding it would be observable and measurable, and this has neither been observed or measured therefore it’s reasonable to conclude that it is no the earth moving to meet the container but the container moving to meet the earth.