what would happen...

[nucleardream]

...if the Earth spun the other way around?

[Eurox]

Not much as far as us in the GMT are concerned, but all the other countries would have to switch they're timezones around

[rojash]

And all those holiday homes and restaurants which are billed has having "spectacular sunset views" would be facing the wrong way!

[Hippy]

The water would go down the plughole the opposite way and some constant weather features would stop working e.g. Gulf Stream. The wind patterns around high and low pressure areas would be reversed. So, it might get very chily here in Britain, unless we gained a sort of Sahara Waft Stream to replace all that temperate air from the west.

[nucleardream]

true, the timezones would be switched around, but what is now ahead in the east would be behind - and behind in the west would be ahead...

kind of thought provoking in a relative sense of the term...

[shammydodger]

Well, my tenner to win on No. 2 in yesterday's 520 at Wincanton would be a winner rather than a short-head loser!

[brachiopod]

The sun would set in the East?

No, but seriously, folks, hippy has a good point about the reversal of weather patterns - and due to the 'irregular' layout of the continents -in that they won't "work" the same way if oceanic / atmospheric currents flowed the other way - then there would be pretty serious and unpredictable consequences.

Of course, unless some divine external force slowed down our planet's rotation, such that it spun 'the other way' - then there is unlikely to be any rotaional reversal in the whole lifetime of our solar system.

(long time, no see, hippy - good to see you back!)

[nucleardream]

no, actually I was thinking what if the sun set in the north and rose in the south.Or what up opening up a whole new dimension...we could call it znarf.

Of course, whether or not this is a serious question is a whole new matter.

[aledhuw]

Inside the earths core there is an electromgnetic field being generated by the solid iron in the core. If the Earth spun the other way around then this charge would be reversed and the northern lights wich are caused by this field would probably be in the southern Hemisphere somwhere!
If the Earth suddenly started to rotate the other way then this Electromagnetic Field would temporarily stop, get mixed up and it would probably cause something like what happened in that crap film "The Core"

The o-zone would collapse letting in harmful uv rays!

Sorry to be the depressing one!

[aledhuw]

There is actually evidence that the Earths poles have switched around a couple of times during the it's life. I don't know if that might interest you at all!

[mibn2cweus]

It would all be the same if the Earth flipped over at the same time . . . except for the stars would be south to north and verse visa . . . and the Sun and the Moon and other planets would look upside down . . . and the Sun would be closer in summer down north instead of up south like it is now . . . err . . . never mind.

[Tim123]

The rotation of the earth has no measurable effect on water going down the plughole.

http://www.ems.psu.edu/~fraser/Bad/BadCoriolis .html