I hope I convey my point probably, but why do planes go so many thousands of feet in the air? Is it faster that way, or could they achieve similar flight times at a lower altitude?
Does it have something to do with the curvature of the earth?
In: Engineering
Radius of earth is 3963 miles. Calculate 1/4 arc length by multiplying by 1.57 = 6222 miles. Diameter of earth is roughly 24,901miles, divided by 4 is 6225 miles so that match checks out.
Add 40,000 feet (7.58 miles) and recalculate gives a quarter arc of 6234 miles.
So you add roughly 12 miles (0.2%) to a trip a quarter of the way around the earth by travelling at 40,000 feet.
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