To determine if the model's distances are proportional to the actual dimensions of the solar system, we need to calculate the scale factor for each distance.
Scale factor for Earth's distance = (Actual distance from the sun to Earth) / (Model distance from the sun to Earth)
= 91.549 million miles / 7 inches
= 13.0784 million miles per inch
Scale factor for Neptune's distance = (Actual distance from the sun to Neptune) / (Model distance from the sun to Neptune)
= 2,780.5 million miles / 19 inches
= 146.3421 million miles per inch
Since the scale factors for Earth and Neptune are different, the model's distances are not proportional to the actual dimensions of the solar system.
In a model, the distance from the sun to Earth is 7 inches and the distance from the sun to Neptune is 19 inches. If the actual distance from the sun to Earth is 91.549 million miles and the actual distance from the sun to Neptune is 2,780.5 million miles, are the model’s distances proportional to the actual dimensions of the solar system?
1 answer