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The Guardian - UK
The Guardian - UK
Science
Nicola Davis Science correspondent

Royal Society exhibition revives 18th-century debate about shape of the Earth

A photograph of two men doing scientific work
Instruments relating to the great trigonometrical survey of India, which began in 1802, are on display. Photograph: The Royal Society 2024

It was a row that split scientists, launched globe-trotting expeditions and for one man, ended in murder: was the Earth shaped like an orange or a lemon?

The 18th-century debate – and the endeavours that settled it –can now be relived by visitors to this year’s Royal Society summer science exhibition, in a display called “Figuring the Earth”.

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