Astronomy - Latitude and Longitude problem

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Discussion Overview

The discussion revolves around a homework problem involving the calculation of distances and bearings related to an airliner flying from London Heathrow to Tokyo Narita, assuming a spherical Earth and a great circle route. The problem includes determining the total distance flown, the initial bearing, and the most northerly point reached on the flight path.

Discussion Character

  • Homework-related
  • Mathematical reasoning

Main Points Raised

  • The initial poster presents the problem statement and provides their calculations for parts a) and b), stating the total distance as 5161 nautical miles and the bearing as 31.6°.
  • The poster expresses uncertainty about how to find the longitude of the most northerly point (latitude 70.95°) on the great circle route, indicating that their spherical triangle lacks sufficient information.
  • In a follow-up post, the poster clarifies that the distance d is the sum of the longitudes of points P and H, suggesting a method to find the longitude of P by subtracting the longitude of H.
  • In a later post, the original poster indicates they have solved the problem without detailing the solution.

Areas of Agreement / Disagreement

The discussion does not appear to have any explicit disagreements, but it remains unresolved regarding the details of the solution for part c) until the original poster shares their findings.

Contextual Notes

The original poster's approach relies on assumptions about the spherical nature of the Earth and the geometry of spherical triangles, which may not be fully detailed in their posts.

Who May Find This Useful

Students working on problems involving spherical geometry, great circle routes, and navigation calculations may find this discussion relevant.

Pomico
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Homework Statement



An airliner flies from London Heathrow (latitude 51^{o}30' N, longitude 0^{o} 10' W) to Tokyo Narita (latitude 35^{o} 40' N, longitude 139^{o} 45' E). Assuming that the Earth is spherical and the aeroplane takes a great circle route,

a)what is the total distance flown in nautical miles
b)in what direction (bearing E of N) does the pilot set out from Heathrow
c)what is the most northerly location (latitude and longitude) that the plane reaches on its great circle route?

Homework Equations



sinA/sina = sinB/sinb = sinC/sinc
cosa=cosb.cosc+sinb.sinc.cosA

The Attempt at a Solution



I have completed parts a) and b) and have found the answers to be 5161 nautical miles and 31.6^{o} respectively.

For part c I have found the latitude to be 70.95^{o} but can't think how to find the longitude as the spherical triangle I have drawn doesn't have enough information and I don't know how to go about finding what I need in order to get the answer.
I have attached a copy of my spherical triangle but it's rather small, my artistic skills are rather limited using a laptop with no mouse...
On my diagram point N is the North Pole, point H is Heathrow and point P is the most northerly point. All of the numerical values given are in degrees. I have another diagram including point T for Tokyo but have omitted this as I don't think it's necessary for the task. If it is please say, and I will upload it.

Thanks in advance!
 
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One thing I forgot, on my diagram the distance d is the longitude of P plus the longitude of H.
I assumed I would go about the second part of the problem by finding d and subtracting the longitude of H as that is essentially what I did for the first part in finding the latitude of P.
 
Never mind, solved it now!
 
Consider posting your solution so that others can search the forums and find what you did.
 

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