Medical Dictionary Online

Coriolis Force

The apparent deflection (Coriolis acceleration) of a body in motion with respect to the earth, as seen by an observer on the earth, attributed to a fictitious force (Coriolis force) but actually caused by the rotation of the earth. In a medical context it refers to the physiological effects (nausea, vertigo, dizziness, etc.) felt by a person moving radially in a rotating system, as a rotating space station. (From Random House Unabridged Dictionary, 2d ed & McGraw-Hill Dictionary of Scientific and Technical Terms, 4th ed)