What is the Earth's orbital speed around the sun?

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SUMMARY

The Earth's orbital speed around the sun is approximately 67,000 miles per hour (107,000 kilometers per hour). This figure is derived from calculations based on the time light takes to reach Earth, which is about 8 minutes. The discussion highlights the use of basic geometry to estimate the Earth's orbital path, with participants noting the assumption of a circular orbit for simplicity. Despite variations in individual calculations, the consensus confirms the speed is around 93% accurate based on these approximations.

PREREQUISITES
  • Understanding of basic geometry, specifically circumference calculations.
  • Familiarity with the concept of light travel time from the sun to Earth.
  • Knowledge of unit conversions between kilometers and miles.
  • Basic grasp of orbital mechanics and celestial motion.
NEXT STEPS
  • Research the mathematical principles behind orbital mechanics.
  • Explore the effects of elliptical orbits on orbital speed calculations.
  • Learn about the methods used to measure astronomical distances and speeds.
  • Investigate the historical context of Earth's orbital speed measurements.
USEFUL FOR

Astronomy enthusiasts, physics students, educators, and anyone interested in understanding the dynamics of celestial bodies and their movements in space.

rhenretta
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I was watching a documentary a couple nights ago, and it caused me to start doing random calculations. Granted the information is easily accessible online, but what is the fun in that.

Here is the problem

Given light takes 8 minutes to reach the Earth from the sun, at what speed is the Earth orbiting the sun.

show your work
 
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You mean pi times the diameter to get the circumference of a circle or pi times 16 light minutes would be the distance roughly traveled by the Earth in a year.
This comes out to about one third of a light second per hour, or:
100,000 km/hr.
 
far too quick, now I need to come up with another problem (admittedly, I was tempted to put it in general math)
 
2EZ
I'll give someone else a try. (I was only off by 7,218 km/hr.):smile:
 
Technically, your answer assumes a perfectly circular orbit, but given the lack of additional information I can't fault you there
 
Yes. its pretty satisfying that with total approximations I get an answer that's 93% right.
 
I thought the same thing, being an imperialist scum, I did my calculations to mph, and came up with over 64,000 mph. It wasn't until yesterday I actually verified my answer (67,000 mph). There is something very satisfying about math
 
And because it is such an appropriate reward for the correct answer:

 
Last edited by a moderator:
Thank you so much. I had never seen that before. Makes me wonder what might be in my fridge.
...and now for something completely different.
 
  • #10
Oh, now I feel bad for you ;-), how about this one

 
Last edited by a moderator:
  • #11
I'm afraid not.
Now I feel bad for me.:smile:
 

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