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Question about Earth's orbit



 
 
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  #1  
Old February 21st 07, 06:30 PM posted to sci.astro
Colin[_2_]
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Posts: 1
Default Question about Earth's orbit

If I were looking at the earth in such a way that I was looking
straight down at the north pole, is the earth orbiting clockwise or
counterclockwise around the sun? Are all the bodies orbiting the sun
orbiting in the same direction?

Thanks,
Colin

  #2  
Old February 21st 07, 06:46 PM posted to sci.astro
George Dishman[_1_]
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Posts: 2,509
Default Question about Earth's orbit


"Colin" wrote in message
oups.com...
If I were looking at the earth in such a way that I was looking
straight down at the north pole, is the earth orbiting clockwise or
counterclockwise around the sun? Are all the bodies orbiting the sun
orbiting in the same direction?


In case this is a homework question, let me first suggest
you can work it out from the fact that the Sun rises in
the east and sets in the west.

George


  #3  
Old February 21st 07, 08:20 PM posted to sci.astro
[email protected]
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Posts: 19
Default Question about Earth's orbit

On Feb 21, 12:46 pm, "George Dishman"
wrote:
"Colin" wrote in message

oups.com...

If I were looking at the earth in such a way that I was looking
straight down at the north pole, is the earth orbiting clockwise or
counterclockwise around the sun? Are all the bodies orbiting the sun
orbiting in the same direction?


In case this is a homework question, let me first suggest
you can work it out from the fact that the Sun rises in
the east and sets in the west.

George


Thats a bit cold George, without adding:
"and orbital speeds are higher closer to the primary". - For the
first question,
and: "Mostly yes." for the second.

MadDog
"No generality is true. - Not even this one." - (Rutherford?)

MadDog

  #4  
Old February 21st 07, 09:46 PM posted to sci.astro
Prai Jei
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Posts: 42
Default Question about Earth's orbit

Colin (or somebody else of the same name) wrote thusly in message
.com:

If I were looking at the earth in such a way that I was looking
straight down at the north pole, is the earth orbiting clockwise or
counterclockwise around the sun? Are all the bodies orbiting the sun
orbiting in the same direction?

Thanks,
Colin


Isn't that what *defines* the "north pole" of a spinning body?
--
Terms and conditions apply. Batteries not included. Subject to status.
Contains moderate language. Always read the label. Keep out of children.

Interchange the alphabetic letter groups to reply
  #5  
Old February 22nd 07, 05:38 AM posted to sci.astro
Shloemoe
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Posts: 8
Default Question about Earth's orbit

Thang about "learned" folk?...(aside from always tellin
ya to RTFM?) they hate to have to see someone
else learn sumthin more better er simpler than they did.

Colin!...Imagine your hovering high above the Earths
equater...k?(notice that the Earth spins by from left
to right)(cause the sun rises in the East)... now advance yerself north
along an arch til yers above the north pole....you'll see a counterclockwise
rotation

....and hey pot smoking is great for geometrical
imagining.....

Says The Shloe

--peace


"Colin" wrote in message
oups.com...
If I were looking at the earth in such a way that I was looking
straight down at the north pole, is the earth orbiting clockwise or
counterclockwise around the sun? Are all the bodies orbiting the sun
orbiting in the same direction?

Thanks,
Colin



  #6  
Old February 22nd 07, 05:45 AM posted to sci.astro
Androcles
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Posts: 260
Default Question about Earth's orbit


"Colin" wrote in message oups.com...
If I were looking at the earth in such a way that I was looking
straight down at the north pole, is the earth orbiting clockwise or
counterclockwise around the sun?


Counterclockwise.

Are all the bodies orbiting the sun
orbiting in the same direction?


No, only most. Keep in mind that space is three-dimensional,
no two planets are in the same plane and a comet can easily
come from above or below and be going clockwise.
Our own satellite, the Moon, is not in the same plane as
the Earth.
http://ecuip.lib.uchicago.edu/diglib...nom_moon-1.gif
Notice the shadow. The Earth-Moon distance is not to scale, but the
picture is a good illustration. If it were not so inclined all eclipses
would appear only in the tropics, never far North or South.



  #7  
Old February 22nd 07, 09:15 AM posted to sci.astro
George Dishman[_1_]
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Posts: 2,509
Default Question about Earth's orbit


wrote in message
oups.com...
On Feb 21, 12:46 pm, "George Dishman"
wrote:
"Colin" wrote in message

oups.com...

If I were looking at the earth in such a way that I was looking
straight down at the north pole, is the earth orbiting clockwise or
counterclockwise around the sun? Are all the bodies orbiting the sun
orbiting in the same direction?


In case this is a homework question, let me first suggest
you can work it out from the fact that the Sun rises in
the east and sets in the west.


Thats a bit cold George,


If he'd come back and said "it's not homework" I would
have given him the answer.

without adding:
"and orbital speeds are higher closer to the primary". - For the
first question,


True, but what relevance does that have to his
question regarding the direction of rotation?

and: "Mostly yes." for the second.


Yes, I could have noted that and that Uranus is the
exception.

http://www.nineplanets.org/

George


 




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