🧹 ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

Astronaut Alvin Drew and scientist Sarah Noble respond to the #BroomstickChallenge [1], showing that basic physics works every day of the year — not just February 10th. pic.twitter.com/4TTbI3mvzd [2]

— NASA (@NASA) February 11, 2020 [3]

On Feb. 10, I saw more brooms on my Instagram feed than Harry Potter saw on the Quidditch field, all thanks to the viral "Broom Challenge" [4] which swept social media [5] at lightning speed. A rumour — falsely accredited to NASA — spread across the internet, implying that for one night only, brooms would stand upright due to the earth's gravitational pull. Welp, if you missed out, don't worry, because it turns out your broom will stand at attention anytime. The real NASA Twitter account debunked the sensational myth with a little bit of shade: "Basic physics works every day of the year."

It turns out this challenge actually surfaces around the same time every few years, and scientists step forward to set things straight. Back in 2012, CNN meteorologist Chad Myers [6] refuted the myth and reminded viewers that a broom standing upright is just . . . balanced. Oops! It sure makes for some fun photos, regardless.