If you’ve already tried this, rest assured that you’re not alone: Yesterday, a tweet quickly went viral claiming that NASA declared February 10 “the only day a broom can stand up on its own because of the gravitational pull.” Cue a plethora of Twitter users pulling off magic tricks in the middle of their kitchens by making a broom stand up by itself.
Turns out though, as with so many things on the internet, that this claim is false. CNN reports that you can actually make a broom stand at any time if you balance it correctly: “The center of gravity is low on a broom, and rests directly over the bristles. Which means, if you can get the bristles positioned like a tripod, your broom will stand upright any day of the year.”
NASA even responded to it via their official Twitter account, showing the basic physics behind the hot phenomenon that is broom standing.
Is the fact that this challenge is based on errant information going to stop Twitter? Oh hell no. Under the hashtag #broomchallenge today, you’ll find no shortage of Swiffer and “sweeping the nation” jokes, as well as people freaked out by brooms that appear to be haunted.
Just hang on to this special skill until everyone forgets about it by the end of the week—then you can pull out a fleet of creepy brooms in October.
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