Extracting Earth Power for a Northeast-Southwest Train

The Earth's rotation is slowing, making us add a leap second to our year, once every two to four years. Power extracted from the Earth's rotation now pushes tides and ocean currents. A simple mechanical analog shows how energy can be extracted and dissipated from a rotating body. A Coriolis force pushes on Earth-surface objects that move northward or southward. German artillery officers who didn't understand Coriolis effects missed Paris with their Big Bertha shells during World War II. An analysis shows that 45 degrees is the best latitude for extracting power by slowing the Earth's rotation. We calculate the contribution of Coriolis force for accelerating a magnetically levitated and guided train that travels in an evacuated tunnel, in a slightly southwest direction.