Coriolis Effect Calculator

Your details

Mass of the moving object (aircraft, missile, ocean current parcel, etc.).
kg
Horizontal speed of the object relative to Earth's surface.
m/s
Geographic latitude of the location. Positive values are north of the equator, negative values are south. The effect is zero at the equator (0 deg) and maximum at the poles (+/-90 deg).
deg
In the Northern hemisphere, moving objects deflect to the right of their direction of travel. In the Southern hemisphere, they deflect to the left.
Duration of travel in seconds, used to compute total deflection distance. 3600 s = 1 hour.
s
Coriolis forceNoticeable
10.3126N

Apparent deflecting force due to Earth's rotation

Coriolis acceleration0.010313m/s^2
Deflection distance66,825.56m
Latitude factor |sin(lat)|0.7071
Deflection directionRight of travel direction
0.7071
Negligible (near equator)<0.1Weak-to-moderate0.1-0.5Moderate-to-strong0.5-0.8Strong (near pole)0.8+

Coriolis force: 10.3126 N, deflecting right by 66825.56 m over 1.00 h.

  • At latitude 45.0 deg, the latitude factor |sin(lat)| = 0.7071, scaling the Coriolis effect to 70.7% of its polar maximum.
  • A force of 10.313 N over 1.00 hours produces a lateral deflection of about 66825.6 m, which is significant for artillery, aircraft navigation, and ocean circulation.
  • Moving objects in the Northern hemisphere deflect to the right of their travel direction, which drives the rotation of cyclones and large weather systems.
  • Coriolis acceleration = 1.031e-2 m/s^2. Compare: gravity at Earth's surface is 9.81 m/s^2, so Coriolis is typically many orders of magnitude smaller for everyday speeds.

Next stepFor artillery or guided missiles, a deflection this large requires active correction in the fire control system or autopilot.

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