28/07/2026 04:06 - Tecnologia
In July 2026, NASA's Scientific Visualization Studio released a 3D model that made the internet wonder: is Earth really a giant potato?
The image, quickly shared across social media, shows a planet covered in bulges and deep depressions. Many claimed it was the 'true shape' of Earth. But the scientific reality is far more intriguing—and it's not about the shape of the land, but about the invisible force of gravity.
The visualization depicts the geoid, a mathematical surface that represents what the global ocean would look like if it were perfectly still and affected only by Earth's gravity—no waves, tides, currents, or wind. It's a fundamental reference for measuring elevation and understanding our planet's interior.
To make the gravity variations visible, NASA exaggerated the scale by 10,000 times. Without that exaggeration, Earth would still appear perfectly round and smooth to the human eye. The actual height differences are tiny: from +85 meters above the reference level near Iceland to -106 meters below it in the southern Indian Ocean. Compared to Earth's diameter of over 12,700 kilometers, these are minuscule.
Earth is not a perfect sphere. Its rotation makes it slightly wider at the equator and flatter at the poles—a shape called an oblate spheroid. The geoid adds another layer of detail to that shape.
The model, named GOCO06s, was created using data from 19 satellites over 15 years, including NASA's GRACE and ESA's GOCE missions. It incorporates more than 1.16 billion observations.
As NASA researcher Michael Watkins explained, 'Earth's gravity has hills and valleys because the distribution of materials deep inside varies.' The geoid is not just a curiosity—it's a critical tool for:
This visualization, originally shared by Argentine news outlets like Diario de Cuyo and Infobae, reminds us that science often reveals a world more complex—and more beautiful—than our eyes can see.
Sources: Diario de Cuyo, Infobae, El Cronista, Ultima Hora.
Alfredo S. Quiroga
