Jon

Where were we?

Sunday, December 3, 2006 4:46:09 AM

In school, most of us were taught the Earth is in orbit around the Sun, and the Moon is in orbit around the Earth, sort of like little circles on the chalk board or a piece of paper.

But the Earth and Sun and Moon, in fact all the pieces of the Solar System are zooming through space together, in orbit around the center of the Milky Way Galaxy!

Can you guess how fast they are traveling in one second?

Well, let me tell you ....

Of course we know where the Earth is now, we are right here! But where were we exactly 100 years ago? Did the Earth just spin around the sun 100 times, and we are back where we started from? No way!

'Where' in this case is truly a relative term. From our point of view? Or the actual, physical location of the Earth 100 years ago?

The Solar System is beyond our ability to calculate at this time. If you are querying the Earth's location along with the Sun and major planets, then it can be done.

The main consideration is that the Sun is in motion through space. It is carrying the Solar System along at better than "250 kilometers/sec." This is an estimate based on the speed of dust and particles that are streaming past the Earth and our satellites that are not part of the Solar System, and the distance between the Sun and the center of the Milky Way, our Galaxy, which the Sun orbits around.

The Earth's location can be calculated by multiplying 100 years, in seconds, by 250 kilometers/sec and subtracting the drift rate of 19 Kilometers/Sec times 100 years, in seconds. That distance, in the opposite direction of the Sun's travel, and in the opposite direction of drift, is where the Earth was 100 years ago.

100 years is 3,155,760,000 seconds! That's more than my watch can count! Times 250 kilometers each second = 788,940,000,000 kilometers!
Then add a little drift at 19 KPS which is only 59,959,440,000 kilometers ;-D
The total distance traveled by the Solar System has therefore carried the Earth 848,899,000,000 Kilometers from where it was 100 years ago!

This does NOT include the distance the Earth traveled in its orbit around the Sun, which is a trip of 938,900,000 km per year!

Final results:
Distance the Earth has traveled - including its path around the Sun: 942,789,000,000 Kilometers!
Distance from starting point 100 years ago: 848,899,000,000 Kilometers!

Is this a lot? Remember in your Astronomy lesson? The teacher told you (at that time Pluto was the 9th planet) that pluto was the last planet in the solar System, and it was very far away: an average of 5,913,520,000 Kilometers. right? I am sure you remember this! ;-D

So the distance the Sun has carried us in 100 years is equal to a trip to pluto AND BACK more than 287 times!

;-D It is in a place far, far away from where the Earth is now.

From astronomycafe:

What is the speed of the Sun and the size of it's orbit?

Copyright 1997 Dr. Sten Odenwald: The Sun orbits the center of the Milky Way at a speed of about 250 kilometers/sec, and its orbital radius is about 8,500 parsecs. It takes over 200 million years to make one full orbit of the Galactic Center. Meanwhile, the Sun is drifting at 19 km/sec in the general direction of Vega as a consequence of the local variation in galactic rotation in our part of the Milky Way.
Source(s):
http://www.astronomycafe.net/qadir/q2170...

Also from http://curious.astro.cornell.edu/question.php?number=374

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