FE Meme
Africa Visible From Spain at 175 Miles?
#157: Mountains in Africa are visible from Spain across 175 miles at eye level, which is impossible on a ball Earth with 8 inches per mile squared curvature.
The Meme
Three-band graphic: sunset mountain photo labeled "THE EARTH IS FLAT / Africa / Spain / 175 MILES AT EYE LEVEL" with peak distance tags; bottom diagram "Ball Radius 3959 miles = 8" per mile squared curve (AFRICA ON A BALL)" with Spain stick figure and Africa dot.
Why It Spreads
Layered peaks across a glowing sunset horizon look like a smoking-gun sightline, especially with 175 miles printed in caps and the classic eight-inches-per-mile-squared slogan underneath. Viewers skip refraction, target elevation, and whether Atlas summits rise thousands of metres above the hidden segment between Spain and Africa.
What It Gets Wrong
The three-band graphic labels "THE EARTH IS FLAT / Africa / Spain / 175 MILES AT EYE LEVEL" and applies the "8" per mile squared curve" slogan as if it hides entire Atlas ranges. With R ≈ 3,959 mi, h ≈ d²/(2R) over 175 mi predicts roughly 3.9 mi (~6.2 km) of geometric midpoint drop, but Atlas peaks exceeding 4000 m can still appear above the horizon when elevations are included. The meme treats eye-level as sea-level and ignores superior mirage and inversion layers over the Strait at sunset. TestTheGlobe's No Curvature Is Visible and TestTheGlobe's Horizon Distance Calculator walk through the observations and predictions this image skips.
The Debunk
With R ≈ 3,959 mi, h ≈ d²/(2R) over 175 mi predicts ~3.9 mi (~6.2 km) of geometric midpoint drop, but Atlas peaks exceeding 4000 m can still appear above the horizon when elevations are included; that fits beyond-horizon views. Treating 175 miles at eye level as hiding entire African ranges via the 8 in/mi² slogan is inconsistent with hidden-height math and sunset refraction. Use TestTheGlobe's Horizon Distance Calculator to compare the meme's claim with a measurable prediction.
- TestTheGlobe's Horizon Distance Calculator inputs observer height and target elevation to show when summits should appear above the geometric horizon on a sphere with R ≈ 3,959 mi.
- TestTheGlobe's No Curvature Is Visible page explains the 8 in/mi² approximation and when hidden-height math replaces slogan arithmetic for a 175-mile sightline.
- TestTheGlobe's No Curvature Is Visible: Atlas peaks stand thousands of metres above the sea; geometry hides bases first, not entire ranges, when elevations are included in h ≈ d²/(2R).
- TestTheGlobe's Horizon Rises to Eye Level: superior mirage and inversion layers over the Strait area can lift apparent horizons at sunset, a weather effect the three-band graphic ignores.