Earth's Orbital Speed Around the Sun

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SUMMARY

The Earth's orbital speed around the Sun is approximately 30 km/s, calculated using the formula for speed, s = d/t, where d is the distance traveled in one complete orbit and t is the time taken for that orbit. The radius of the Earth's orbit is 148 million km, and the orbital period is 365 days, which can be converted into seconds for accurate calculations. The discussion emphasizes the importance of unit conversion and the approximation of the orbit as a circle for simplification.

PREREQUISITES
  • Understanding of circular motion and orbital mechanics
  • Familiarity with the formula for speed: s = d/t
  • Knowledge of unit conversion, particularly between days and seconds
  • Basic grasp of angular velocity, ω = 2π/T
NEXT STEPS
  • Research the concept of orbital mechanics and Kepler's laws of planetary motion
  • Learn about the calculations involved in determining the circumference of a circle
  • Study the principles of unit conversion in physics
  • Explore the relationship between angular velocity and linear speed in circular motion
USEFUL FOR

Students studying physics, astronomers, and anyone interested in understanding the dynamics of planetary motion and orbital speed calculations.

Dragoon
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The Earth has an orbit of radius 148 million km around the sun. What is the speed of the Earth on this orbit?

dont know how to do it i have used a couple of different formulas and haven't gotten it right can anyone help?
 
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Can you not use v = rω and the fact that ω = 2π/T?
 
Dragoon said:
The Earth has an orbit of radius 148 million km around the sun. What is the speed of the Earth on this orbit?

dont know how to do it i have used a couple of different formulas and haven't gotten it right can anyone help?

How long does the Earth take to make an orbit around the sun?
What distance does the Earth travel in an orbit?
(Since the problem tells you that the orbit has a radius you can probably safely approximate the orbit with a circle of the appropriate radius.)
Then you can find speed using s=\frac{d}{t} although you might want to do some unit conversion.
 
NateTG said:
How long does the Earth take to make an orbit around the sun?
What distance does the Earth travel in an orbit?
(Since the problem tells you that the orbit has a radius you can probably safely approximate the orbit with a circle of the appropriate radius.)
Then you can find speed using s=\frac{d}{t} although you might want to do some unit conversion.
Period T = 365 days = ... seconds.
Then using formulae which Nylex gave.
 
What is the speed of the Earth on this orbit? 30km/s
 

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