Imagine that a tunnel is bored in the Earth’s equatorial plane, going completely through the center of the Earth with both ends at the Equator. A mass of 5.00 kg is dropped into the tunnel at one end, as shown in the figure. The tunnel has a radius that is slightly larger than that of the mass.

The mass is dropped into the center of the tunnel. Neglect air resistance and friction from the tunnel wall. Does the mass ever touch the wall of the tunnel as it falls? If so, which side does it touch first, north, east, south, or west? (Hint: The angular momentum of the mass is conserved if the only forces acting on it are radial.)
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