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distance between the center of the Earth and the North Pole. This is 6,356.752 km. If a stick was cut on this imaginary spherical Earth using the definition of a meter outlined above, how long would it be? Is this length longer or shorter than an actual meter? By how much? b) More recently, a meter was defined as the distance that light travels in a vacuum during 1/299792458th of a second. Let us now use this definition of the meter. If light were traveling around the spherical Earth's circumference, how many trips around the Earth would it make in 1 minute?

distance between the center of the Earth and the North Pole. This is 6,356.752 km. If a stick was cut on this imaginary spherical Earth using the definition of a meter outlined above, how long would it be? Is this length longer or shorter than an actual meter? By how much? b) More recently, a meter was defined as the distance that light travels in a vacuum during 1/299792458th of a second. Let us now use this definition of the meter. If light were traveling around the spherical Earth's circumference, how many trips around the Earth would it make in 1 minute?

Applications and Investigations in Earth Science (9th Edition)
Applications and Investigations in Earth Science (9th Edition)
9th Edition
ISBN:9780134746241
Author:Edward J. Tarbuck, Frederick K. Lutgens, Dennis G. Tasa
Publisher:Edward J. Tarbuck, Frederick K. Lutgens, Dennis G. Tasa
Chapter1: The Study Of Minerals
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In 1791, soon after the French Revolution, the French Academy defined the meter as the distance equal to one ten-millionth of the length of the Earth’s meridian along a quadrant, the meridian being the North-South line of longitude. In other words, the meter would be defined as if you took the circumference of a circle around the Earth, from Pole-to-Pole, divided it by 4 (the quadrant), then divided that distance by 10,000,000. This definition assumes that the Earth is perfectly spherical. However, the Earth is actually an oblate spheroid, meaning its equatorial radius is larger than its polar radius. a) Let’s imagine that the Earth was in fact spherical, with a radius given by the distance between the center of the Earth and the North Pole. This is 6,356.752 km. If a stick was cut on this imaginary spherical Earth using the definition of a meter outlined above, how long would it be? Is this length longer or shorter than an actual meter? By how much? b) More recently, a meter was defined as the distance that light travels in a vacuum during 1/299792458th of a second. Let us now use this definition of the meter. If light were traveling around the spherical Earth’s circumference, how many trips around the Earth would it make in 1 minute? Possibly Useful Equations/Relations: - Distance = Speed x Time = v*t - Circle Circumference = π x Diameter = π*D - Diameter = 2 x Radius = 2*R Units and Abbreviations: - m: meter (distance) - cm: centimeter (distance) - km: kilometer (distance) - AU: Astronomical Unit (distance) - s: second (time) - yr: year (time) Relevant Numbers: - Speed of Light = 3x10⁸ m/s - 1 lightyear = the distance light travels in one year = 9.5x10¹² km
Transcribed Image Text:In 1791, soon after the French Revolution, the French Academy defined the meter as the distance equal to one ten-millionth of the length of the Earth’s meridian along a quadrant, the meridian being the North-South line of longitude. In other words, the meter would be defined as if you took the circumference of a circle around the Earth, from Pole-to-Pole, divided it by 4 (the quadrant), then divided that distance by 10,000,000. This definition assumes that the Earth is perfectly spherical. However, the Earth is actually an oblate spheroid, meaning its equatorial radius is larger than its polar radius. a) Let’s imagine that the Earth was in fact spherical, with a radius given by the distance between the center of the Earth and the North Pole. This is 6,356.752 km. If a stick was cut on this imaginary spherical Earth using the definition of a meter outlined above, how long would it be? Is this length longer or shorter than an actual meter? By how much? b) More recently, a meter was defined as the distance that light travels in a vacuum during 1/299792458th of a second. Let us now use this definition of the meter. If light were traveling around the spherical Earth’s circumference, how many trips around the Earth would it make in 1 minute? Possibly Useful Equations/Relations: - Distance = Speed x Time = v*t - Circle Circumference = π x Diameter = π*D - Diameter = 2 x Radius = 2*R Units and Abbreviations: - m: meter (distance) - cm: centimeter (distance) - km: kilometer (distance) - AU: Astronomical Unit (distance) - s: second (time) - yr: year (time) Relevant Numbers: - Speed of Light = 3x10⁸ m/s - 1 lightyear = the distance light travels in one year = 9.5x10¹² km
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