Credit: Disney If there is one thing Disney World Guests can count on when they visit Disney World, it is that at some point during your stay, you will surely encounter Florida rain.
In Florida, rain is widespread, and during the summer seasons, it will happen daily. It is not surprising to see a treacherous downpour at 1:00 p.m. and then at 1:15 p.m., blue skies and bright sun (or bright suns, if you are on Batuu, of course).
When a rainfall happens at Walt Disney World, Guests often flock to shelter to protect themselves from the rain if they do not have a poncho or umbrella. In EPCOT, Spaceship Earth is a great place to stop and avoid the rain — but really, it shouldn’t be! Spaceship Earth is a geodesic sphere, which means that theoretically, rainwater should gush downward and around to the base of the ball when rain hits the top.
But when at Disney World, this doesn’t happen; somehow, the base of Spaceship Earth tends to remain dry. So how does Disney World defy gravity? The answer is a little sprinkle of pixie dust, combined with the genius Imagineers that created Spaceship Earth!
Thanks to TikToker Kenzie (@monorailsupplyco), we now know why the water does not trickle down to the Guests under the globe.
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@monorailsupplyco #epcot #worldshowcase #thankthephoenicians #disneytiktok #wdw #disneyfacts #disneysecrets #disneyap #dvcmember #disneyfamily #disneyparks
On TikTok, Kenzie brings up the fact that Spaceship Earth actually has a gutter system collecting the water through the ball itself. The water is then transported to underground drains, which funnel into the World Showcase lagoon! Clearly, we can see that Disney thinks of every way to ensure that Guests are having the ultimate vacation or visit when they come to Disney World!
EPCOT uses Alucobond panels, which basically create a sandwich so that a drainage system can run internally. There are one-inch gaps between each panel which allow rainwater to funnel in and collect through the drainage system. If you walk under Spaceship Earth, Guests will be able to see the small gaps between the panels. Of course, there is always a chance some rainwater does not fall into the gaps, but the drainage system does allow for a much drier experience under Spaceship Earth when raining.
What do you think of this fun fact about Spaceship Earth? Did you ever wonder why the water did not pool under the structure? Let us know in the comments below!