Question

Latitudes Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, and Miami, Florida, lie approximately on the same meridian. Pittsburgh has a latitude of 40.5 degreesN, and Miami has a latitude of 25.5 degrees N. Find the distance between these two cities. (The radius of the earth is 3960 mi.)

Answer 1

Answer:

$r = 1036.725\,mi$

Step-by-step explanation:

The distance per unit grade on Earth is:

$\Delta s = \frac{2\pi\cdot (3960\,mi)}{360}$

$\Delta s \approx 69.115\,miles$

The distance between Pittsburgh and Miami is:

$r = (69.115\,mi)\cdot (40.5^{\textdegree}-25.5^{\textdegree})$

$r = 1036.725\,mi$