If the gravity in that region is lower, then why is the sea level in that area 106m lower? Shouldn’t it be higher?
It’s because on the other side of the Equator, everything’s opposite! /rimshot
It seems odd, but it’s correct.
From article:
the reason is that higher gravity regions pull ocean water toward them and away from lower gravity regions, causing the latter to have less water and consequently lower sea levels. Also, water, being nearly incompressible, cannot be pulled down by higher gravity regions since there is no downward direction for it to move. Instead, water accumulates over areas with high gravity.
I was wondering that too
Woke Physics?
Spitballing here:
Centrifugal force from the spin of the Earth about its poles operates in the opposite direction from gravity.
The missing water in that region has “flowed” (really not, because it’s a steady-state water divot in equilibrium) uphill and radially away from its center because gravity at the center is insufficient to keep it in place compared to normal gravity at the “rim” of the divot.
If the gravity insufficiency were to be eliminated with the snap of the finger, the water would start flowing downhill again, eliminating the water divot.
Another question is what is the volume of this water divot, and does that volume fluctuate over time, presumably causing average water levels around the world to rise or fall based on the direction of the change.
Also, if the spin of the earth were to stop, on a dime, with the snap of the finger, the water divot would disappear because there would be no more centrifugal force dragging water radially outward/upward from the center of what previously was a water divot.
Admittedly this analysis basically says that the water divot would never have formed at all, despite the gravity anomaly, in the absence of spin-induced centrifugal force.
Upon further reflection the divot must be the size it is based on BOTH the size of the gravity deficiency AND the speed of spin (roughly 1,000 miles per hour at sea level).
Be interested to see the math to see which influence predominates.
That was my first thought. I suppose the higher gravity areas pull water away from the lower gravity areas?