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Find the distance that the Earth travels in one day in its path around the Sun. Assume that a year has 365 days and that the path of the Earth around the Sun is a circle of radius 93 million miles.

I'm doing precalc review for a calc class and I don't know how to solve this.

Thanks in advance!

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    $\begingroup$ Okay, if it takes 365 days to travel $2\pi\times 93\text{ million miles}$, then it takes 1 day to travel ______. Fill in the blank. (Hint: ratios) $\endgroup$
    – J. M. ain't a mathematician
    Sep 19, 2011 at 1:54
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    $\begingroup$ x/1 = (2pi * 93,000,000) / 365?? so x=1600921.188? $\endgroup$
    – kubasub
    Sep 19, 2011 at 2:11
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    $\begingroup$ ratios are awesome! thanks :) $\endgroup$
    – kubasub
    Sep 19, 2011 at 2:14
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    $\begingroup$ @J.M. You should post the hint as an answer. :) $\endgroup$
    – Srivatsan
    Sep 19, 2011 at 2:16
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    $\begingroup$ @Sri: Dunno, I'm thinking it might be a good idea for KubaSub to try to write his solution in his own words. (For instance, where did I get the $2\pi\times 93$ million miles? KubaSub should answer that himself, if he truly understood what I did there.) ;) $\endgroup$
    – J. M. ain't a mathematician
    Sep 19, 2011 at 2:19

1 Answer 1

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The circumference of a circle of radius $r$ is $2\pi r$; you’ve been given $r$, so you can find the circumference of the orbit. It takes the Earth $365$ days to travel that distance, so in $1$ day it travels what fraction of the circumference?

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