SOLUTION: a space shuttle 240 miles above the earth orbits the earth every 5 hours. How far (to the nearest 10 miles) does the shuttle travel in 1 hour? ( the diameter of the earth is approx

Algebra ->  Trigonometry-basics -> SOLUTION: a space shuttle 240 miles above the earth orbits the earth every 5 hours. How far (to the nearest 10 miles) does the shuttle travel in 1 hour? ( the diameter of the earth is approx      Log On


   

Question 334792: a space shuttle 240 miles above the earth orbits the earth every 5 hours. How far (to the nearest 10 miles) does the shuttle travel in 1 hour? ( the diameter of the earth is approximately 8000 miles)
Answer by ptaylor(2198) About Me  (Show Source):
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The space shuttle's orbit, then, is 8000 plus 480 or 8480 miles in diameter. The distance around the orbit is the circumference of the orbit and this can be found by the formula: C=(pi)D where C is the circumference, D is the diameter and (pi) equals 3.14159265---. So C=(pi)*8480=3.14159265*8480= 26640.706 miles. and we are told that the space shuttle traverses that distance ever 5 hours. So in 1 hour the space shuttle travels (26640.706)/5= 5328.1412 miles. I suppose we could round off (pi) to 3.14 and still be within 10 miles.
Hope this helps--ptaylor