Just a few hundred years ago, most scientists of the day refused to consider the notion that the earth might be round instead of flat.
And just 40 years ago the “consensus” (I’d bet at Popular Science too) was that the world was cooling and we were headed for a new mini-ice age.
Most scientists or philosophers have thought the earth round for thousands of years. Plato and Aristotle said the earth was round. Tall cliffs are visible further out in the sea. There was a sunlight at the bottom of a well experiment— using trigonometry. Constellations of stars appeared differently to the ancients when journeying to distant lands.
"1,500 years ago, everybody knew that the Earth was the center of the universe. 500 years ago, everybody knew that the Earth was flat. And 15 minutes ago, you knew that humans were alone on this planet. Imagine what you'll know tomorrow."
- - Agent K from Men In Black