If You Dug Through Earth from England, Where Would You Emerge? (Not Where You Think)

Contrary to the childhood fantasy, digging straight down from England **won't pop you out in Australia or New Zealand**. You'd hit **ocean**—specifically, the **South Pacific**, southeast of New Zealand.

The Antipodes of England

• London (51.5° N, 0.1° W) → Antipode: **51.5° S, 179.9° E** — open ocean, ~800 km SE of **Antipodes Islands** (NZ subantarctic), ~1,000 km S of **Chatham Islands**.
• Southern England (e.g., Southampton) → Slightly closer to NZ, still deep ocean.
• Northern England (e.g., Newcastle) → Even farther into South Pacific.

Why Not Australia?

Australia spans ~10°–40° S. England's antipodal latitude is **~51° S** — the **"Furious Fifties"**, roaring westerlies, no land. The only land near 51° S: **southern Chile/Argentina (Patagonia)**, **South Georgia**, **Antipodes/Campbell/Auckland Islands (NZ)**. England's longitude (0°) puts its antipode at 180° — the **antimeridian**, mid-Pacific.

The "40,075 km" Claim in the Original Answer

That's Earth's **circumference** (equatorial). The antipodal distance (through Earth's center) is **12,742 km** (diameter). The surface distance *along the curve* between antipodes is **20,037 km** (half circumference). The original answer confused these.

Fun Fact

Only ~15% of land has land antipodes. **England's antipode is ocean.** So are most of Europe's, Asia's, and North America's. Dig from **Madrid** → **Webber, New Zealand** (one of the rare land-land pairs). Dig from **Shanghai** → **Concordia, Argentina**.

So: grab a shovel in London, and you'll surface in the South Pacific—wet, windy, and very far from a pub.