Map shows where you would end up if you dug through the Earth from Portsmouth

If the world is round, where would I come up if I dug my way straight to the other side?

The question, of course, is both rhetorical and redundant, as it is impossible to dig to the centre of the Earth – let alone back through to the other side.

But should some adventurous residents consider becoming the next Ben Fogle, or Gertrude Bell, and attempt digging through from their back garden, it would at least help to know where you are going.

Now, a website called Antipodesmap.com allows people to see exact coordinates for the other side of the world, right down to your postcode.

The antipodes are diametric opposite points on the earth’s surface – or put simply, if you drew a straight line through the earth’s core, it’s where you would end up.

For example, if you dug through the earth from Hong Kong, you would end up in La Quiaca in Argentina, and if you travelled from Madrid you would find yourself in Weber, New Zealand.

Sadly, antipodal travel has a more sombre ending for Portsmouth residents.

If you started at the Spinnaker Tower, and dug straight through to the centre of the Earth, you would end up slap bang in the middle of the Southern Ocean.

The nearest dry land would be Antipodes Island, an inhospitable and uninhabitable volcanic island, more than 50km away.

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In fact, there is no antipodal land mass for anywhere in England.

With the earth being 70 per cent water, it is more than likely that shovelling explorers would only find themselves somewhere in the middle of the sea.

The website reads: ‘At least once in a lifetime you've asked what is under your feet, on the other side of the world.

‘You can learn a little bit of geography in a funny and simple way.

‘If you dig a straight tunnel, in most areas, of Europe or United States you will come out in the ocean. The only places where a straight hole will emerge in China are parts in Argentina and Chile.’

Still, worth a look at least.

A message from the Editor, Mark Waldron

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