If Earth was 10 times farther away from the sun than it is now, which planet would it be
closest to? (Assume all the planets are aligned with the sun and are on the same side of the
sun.) Compare Earth's new distance to that planet. How far apart would they be in standard
notation? How far apart in scientific notation? Show your work.
If Earth was 10 times farther away from the sun than it is now, it would be closest to the planet Saturn.
Currently, Earth's average distance from the sun is approximately 93 million miles (93,000,000 miles). If Earth was 10 times farther away, its new distance from the sun would be 930 million miles (930,000,000 miles).
Saturn, on the other hand, is currently approximately 886 million miles (886,000,000 miles) away from the sun. So, Earth would be slightly closer to the sun compared to Saturn.
In standard notation, the distance between Earth and Saturn would be the difference between their distances from the sun:
930 million miles - 886 million miles = 44 million miles.
In scientific notation, the distance between Earth and Saturn would be:
9.30 x 10^7 miles - 8.86 x 10^7 miles = 4.4 x 10^6 miles.
If Earth was 10 times farther away from the sun than it is now, it would be closest to the planet Jupiter.
Currently, Earth's average distance from the sun is about 93 million miles (or 150 million kilometers). If we multiply this distance by 10, we get 930 million miles (1.5 billion kilometers), which would be Earth's new distance from the sun.
The average distance between Jupiter and the sun is about 484 million miles (778 million kilometers).
To find the difference between the new distance of Earth from the sun and the distance between Earth and Jupiter, we subtract the two distances:
New distance between Earth and Jupiter = new distance of Earth from the sun - distance between Jupiter and the sun
= 930 million miles - 484 million miles
= 446 million miles
In standard notation, the new distance between Earth and Jupiter would be 446,000,000 miles.
In scientific notation, we can express this distance as 4.46 x 10^8 miles.
To find out which planet Earth would be closest to if it were 10 times farther away from the Sun, we need to compare the distances between Earth and the other planets.
First, let's find out Earth's current distance from the Sun. Earth's average distance from the Sun is approximately 93 million miles (or 150 million kilometers), which can be expressed in scientific notation as 9.3 x 10^7 miles (or 1.5 x 10^8 kilometers).
If Earth were 10 times farther away from the Sun, its new distance would be 930 million miles (or 1.5 billion kilometers) from the Sun. In scientific notation, this would be written as 9.3 x 10^8 miles (or 1.5 x 10^9 kilometers).
Now, let's look at the distances of the other planets from the Sun. The average distance of each planet from the Sun can be found in various sources, but for simplicity, we'll use approximate values:
- Mercury: 36 million miles (or 58 million kilometers)
- Venus: 67 million miles (or 108 million kilometers)
- Mars: 142 million miles (or 228 million kilometers)
- Jupiter: 484 million miles (or 778 million kilometers)
- Saturn: 886 million miles (or 1.4 billion kilometers)
- Uranus: 1.8 billion miles (or 2.9 billion kilometers)
- Neptune: 2.8 billion miles (or 4.5 billion kilometers)
Comparing Earth's new distance (930 million miles or 1.5 billion kilometers) with the distances of the other planets, we can see that Earth would be closest to Mars. The distance between Earth and Mars would be 142 million miles (or 228 million kilometers) in standard notation. In scientific notation, it would be 1.42 x 10^8 miles (or 2.28 x 10^8 kilometers).
Therefore, Earth would be closest to Mars if it were 10 times farther away from the Sun, with a distance of approximately 142 million miles (or 228 million kilometers) in standard notation, or 1.42 x 10^8 miles (or 2.28 x 10^8 kilometers) in scientific notation.