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Posidonius calculated the Earth's circumference by reference to the position of the star Canopus.As explained by Cleomedes, Posidonius observed Canopus on but never above the horizon at Rhodes, while at Alexandria he saw it ascend as far as 7 + 1 ⁄ 2 degrees above the horizon (the meridian arc between the latitude of the two locales is actually 5 degrees 14 minutes).
With a stade of 185 m (607 ft), 804,000,000 stadia is 149,000,000 km (93,000,000 mi), approximately the distance from the Earth to the Sun. Eratosthenes also calculated the Sun's diameter. According to Macrobius, Eratosthenes made the diameter of the Sun to be about 27 times that of the Earth. [20] The actual figure is approximately 109 times. [29]
Posidonius's method for calculating the circumference of the Earth, relied on the altitude of the star Canopus. Posidonius was informed in his approach to finding the Earth's circumference by Eratosthenes, who a century earlier arrived at a figure of 252,000 stadia; both men's figures for the Earth's circumference were uncannily accurate.
Eratosthenes's method to calculate the Earth's circumference ... or 1/50th the circumference of a circle. Taking the Earth as spherical, the Earth's circumference ...
He measured the Earth's circumference by reference to the position of the star Canopus. His measure of 240,000 stadia translates to 24,000 miles (39,000 km), close to the actual circumference of 24,901 miles (40,074 km). [11] He was informed in his approach by Eratosthenes, who a century earlier used the elevation of the Sun at different latitudes.
Here's a Map that Puts All Earth's Land Mass in the Shape of a Chicken. Zach Everson. Updated September 22, 2016 at 2:13 PM. Getty Images.
Aristarchus of Samos (c. 310 – c. 230 BC), a Greek mathematician who calculated the distance from the Earth to the Sun. Eratosthenes (c. 276 – c. 194/195 BC), a Greek mathematician who calculated the circumference of the Earth and also the distance from the Earth to the Sun. Greek mathematics; On the Sizes and Distances (Aristarchus)
In 2022, he completed an iconic lifetime goal of swimming a distance equivalent to the Earth's circumference. For context, that's about 1.75 million lengths in a 25-yard pool.