So, my intuition was off, like the article describes. The article doesn't mention it, but the rope would be nearly 6 inches off the ground. After I did the math

So, my intuition was off, like the article describes. The article doesn't mention it, but the rope would be nearly 6 inches off the ground. After I did the math, this makes trivial sense, and I feel rather moronic for both knowing the equations and not intuiting it. π is the ratio between circumference and diameter. The planet is a red herring. If you're still not seeing it, I'll try to explain: Let's say the circumference of the earth in yards, c, is 43,825,760: >>> c = 43_825_760 Remember C = πd, so the diameter of the earth is d = C/π: >>> import math >>> d = c / math.pi Add 1 to c (our 1 yard); this is the circumference of the rope plus slack, then divide by π to get the diameter of the rope. Subtract earth's diameter above. >>> ((c+1) / math.pi) - d 0.3183098863810301 # yards. ~11.4 inches Remember that this is the change in diameter. From the perspective of a person looking at this rope, you'll only see half of that (the other half is on the other side of the earth), so it's really only ~5.7 inches (The "nearly 6 inches" above). Here's the thing that I missed thinking this through. That 0.318 number? If we take the "1 yard" we added in slack (circumference) and we make a ratio between it and the change in diameter (0.318) — the ratio between circumference and diameter is called π. The math: >>> 1/0.3183098863810301 3.1415926516431183 Adding 1 yard slack will make that much difference on any planet. You could be on Jupiter, or the Sun, and this would work.