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Oct 22, 2024
2:54:11pm
mvtoro Scrub
Do you know the difference between a “solar day” and a sidereal day”? This is what he’s taking about. A solar day is
~4 minutes longer because the earth must rotate an extra ~1degree to complete its solar day to account for the ~1degree it has advanced in its orbit around the sun.

We base our 24-hour day on a solar day.

But one actual rotation of the earth (a sidereal day) takes less than that.
We don’t care much or think about sidereal days because we use the sun to base our time, but it’s the time that the earth’s rotation speed ACTUALLY competes one revolution.

If the earth were stationary and it were not in motion around the sun, a solar and sidereal day would be the same. Most people assume they are.

So its strange for most people to learn that it takes less than 24 hours for the earth to complete one full rotation.

Does that make sense?
mvtoro
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mvtoro
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