When traveling west, at what point do you begin traveling east? (Such as, if you walked due north you would come to the north pole and then you would be traveling south until you reached the south pole and you would again be traveling north.)

triviasam

If you were walking west, you would always walk west, to go east you'd have to turn around. There are no definitive markers like the North and South Poles that put a finite limit on a direction. Jul 12 06, 11:02 PM

kisstherainbow

It's all relative to a position on the globe. Jul 13 06, 8:44 AM

zbeckabee

Looking at the globe straight on...you would automatically be changing directions at either end by just continually walking around the planet. Traveling WEST, when you hit the left side of the globe you would immediately begin to travel EAST and vice versa. Jul 13 06, 3:37 PM

Baloo55th

However far you walk (or swim!), going west you will have north on your right. All the way round to where you started. There ain't no east or west side, except politically. As Sam says, no west or east poles. Jul 13 06, 4:00 PM

zbeckabee

Baloo55th--I need YOU at my next I.R.S. Audit!!! That kind of thinking will drive them nuts!!! Jul 14 06, 7:36 PM

What-A-Mess

West is West and East is East. The direction does not ever change. The only reason that the direction changes when traveling North or South is because of the fixed poles. Once you have crossed the Pole and are traveling away from, with your back toward, you change the direction of travel. There exists no East or West "fixed point" so there is no directional threshold in the travels. You may say one is traveling toward the "East" (Asia etc) while traveling West but one is not traveling in the compass direction of East. And of course vice-versa referring to the USofA and Europe(the West) while traveling East. Just as sam has said. Jul 14 06, 8:32 PM

What-A-Mess

To continue. When traveling East your compass will ALWAYS say East and the same for West. Not so when traveling North or South When one crosses the South Pole the compass does an immediate 180 degree shift (actually it spins multidirectionally for a bit until you are far enough away to be traveling in a true declination) facing Magnetic North once again (the closest Magnetic North). Jul 14 06, 8:37 PM

What-A-Mess

The same goes for the North Pole travels. Jul 14 06, 8:38 PM

Baloo55th

That's the South Magnetic Pole rather than the actual South Pole, of course. Unless you are using a gyroscopic compass set to True North (and South). When you stand at the South Pole with a magnetic compass, it will point south towards the magnetic pole, which is really north of you.... Jul 15 06, 5:42 AM

What-A-Mess

.....And we know that the compass nearly always points to magnetic north. So what are those two exceptions? If you were to take a compass and stand just over either the north or the south magnetic pole, you would see the compass spin freely. From the south pole, every direction is north and from the north pole, there is no north. http://starryskies.com/Artshtml/dln/8-97/compass.html http://starryskies.com/Artshtml/dln/8-97/compass.html Jul 15 06, 6:45 AM

What-A-Mess

Actually...... A compasss used in the North AND the South would really be a mess. Compasses are weighted for designated usage zones to counter-act "dipping" caused by the magnetic pull of the pole THROUGH the Earth (the straightest line toward the Pole). Thusly causing a needle to "dip" and "drag" differently in different Geographic zones. See #3 in the link provided. http://www.wide-screen.com/support/FAQsuunto.shtml http://www.wide-screen.com/support/FAQsuunto.shtml What this has to do with the posted question I do not know. Maybe it will help explain ALL the directional rules of the Globe. Jul 15 06, 6:58 AM

Baloo55th

Unless you've got a very rare single ended compass needle, it will point to south as well as north. Depends on which end of the needle you look at... Jul 15 06, 3:19 PM

What-A-Mess

And at 6 o'clock it is 12:30 if you turn your watch upside down! Jul 15 06, 3:49 PM