Earth in our Solar System

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Topics we will cover
• Earth measurements and characteristics
• Development of solar system model
• History of Earth ideas
• Measurements of the ancients
• Notable characteristics of bodies in our solar system
 The Universe is Big
Let’s get an idea scale…
◦https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HEheh1BH34Q
 The Earth
So let’s start somewhere familiar…
Objectives: Part One
• To assess early interpretations of the Earth

• To assess evidence of a round/spherical Earth

• To support round earth model with naked-eye observation

• To dispel flat Earth claims

 The Earth - Discussion
Is it Round or Flat?
Conspiracy Theories – Side Note
Which ones can you name? Do you believe any?
 The Earth – Conspiracy Theory
We’ll dispel the Flat Earth Theory…
 The Earth is Round
Let’s look at early evidence.…

Pythagoras: 570 –495 BC Aristotle: 384–322 BC

 Round Earth
• Allegedly first proposed by Pythagoras
• First evidence by Aristotle

And before that….?

Pythagoras: 570 –495 BC Aristotle: 384–322 BC

 Earlier Interpretations of the Earth
Nebra sky disk, Northern Europe ≈ 1600BC
◦ 30cm bronze disk
 Earlier Interpretations of the Earth
Native American rock drawings (petroglyphs) ≈ 1000 AD
◦Show a supernova?
 Evidence – Pair Task
• What naked-eye evidence supports the Earth being a sphere?
 Evidence: One
• Shape of Earth’s shadow on the moon during eclipses
• Flat disc would be oval/a line

This! Not this!

 That Line on the Moon
Its called the Terminator!
 Aristotle’s Dogmatic Claim
• “A sphere is a perfect solid and the heavens are a region of perfection”
• (Not really evidence)
 Evidence: Two
• During travel:
• Some stars ‘change position’
• Some stars become visible/invisible
 Evidence: Two - Disproof
• Wouldn’t happen with a flat Earth
 Aristotle’s Take on This
• Concluded after returning from a trip to Egypt (1500km away)
• “There are stars seen in Egypt and…Cyprus which are not seen in the northerly regions.”
 A Further Conclusion on Earth
• This observed ‘change’ also suggested the Earth wasn’t THAT big
• “The Earth is of no great size, for otherwise the effect of so slight a change of
place would not be quickly apparent.”
 Stars ‘changing place/disappearing’
• Matched with ancient stories of ships ‘disappearing’ over the horizon
 Evidence: These Days
• Lake Michigan, USA – Buildings disappear ‘bottom first’
• Ships do the same
 Analogy
• An ant walking on an orange doesn’t ‘disappear’
The Earth is a Sphere
Can you think of any more evidence?
 More Naked-eye Evidence
• You can apparently see the same sunset twice!
• https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CLyRCoIJi0s
• https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LcrAB72UM_E
 More Evidence: Nowadays
• Photographs (NASA)
• View from planes/space stations
 More Evidence: Nowadays
•U2 spy plane – 70,000 feet (Commercial flights – 30,000 feet)
• https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q48Swb2ATww
 Even More Evidence: Nowadays
• Felix Baumgartner’s freefall from 128,000 feet!
• https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZyIVaZXDhho
 A Question
• Explain why we can’t see the curvature when on the ground
 A Question
• We see just a tiny proportion of the Earth when at sea level
• Analogy: Flea on a beach ball

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 Visualisation
• The closer you get, the less you see of the whole
 Visualisation
• Getting higher up will reveal parts hidden due to curvature
 Earth’s Curvature – Rule of Thumb
• “For every mile, you drop 8 inches from the horizontal”
• Note: This only works as an estimation
 Earth’s Curvature – Visualisation
• If we look out at sea, the horizon is about 3 miles away (from eye level)
• Roughly half a metre of ‘drop’
 How Much Curvature is Visible?
Commercial flight (10km up)
• Not Distinguishable
 How Much is Visible?
ISS space station (400km up)
 Side Video – Sleeping in Space
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UyFYgeE32f0
 Side Note – Group Task
Being in space may not be fun. Why?
 Space travel
• Like being in a submarine
• Astronauts lose 1% to 2% of their bone mineral density every month
• Muscles atrophy
 How Much is Visible?
You have to get very high up!
Time Zones – Support Spherical Earth
• Midday in Bangkok = Midnight in Kansas, USA
• Can’t be explained by a ‘spotlight’ sun
Earth Dimensions and Properties
Let’s move away from the Flat Earth stuff….
Important Note!
• We’ve only discussed whether the Earth is a sphere/flat
• Geocentrism vs Heliocentrism- coming soon
 Objectives: Part Two
• To look at how the ancients calculated the size of the Earth

• To analyze the Earth’s dimensions

• To clarify the definition of the Earth as a planet

The Ancients
• Many Earth properties were calculated 1000s of years ago!
• By Ancient Greeks like Eratosthenes

Eratosthenes: 276–195 BC
 Eratosthenes Profile – Part One
• Born in Cyrene, Ancient Greece (now Libya)
• ≈2200 years ago
• Chief librarian of Library of Alexandria, Egypt ≈ 236 BC
• Invented Geography?
 Eratosthenes Profile – Part Two
• Librarian, geographer, mathematician, astronomer, historian, and poet
• “Sieve of Eratosthenes” system for identifying prime numbers
• Most famous for calculating Earth’s Circumference