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Earth radius (denoted as R 🜨 or R E) is the distance from the center of Earth to a point on or near its surface. Approximating the figure of Earth by an Earth spheroid (an oblate ellipsoid), the radius ranges from a maximum (equatorial radius, denoted a) of nearly 6,378 km (3,963 mi) to a minimum (polar radius, denoted b) of nearly 6,357 km (3,950 mi).
The planet Earth has a rather slight equatorial bulge; its equatorial diameter is about 43 km (27 mi) greater than its polar diameter, with a difference of about 1 ⁄ 298 of the equatorial diameter. If Earth were scaled down to a globe with an equatorial diameter of 1 metre (3.3 ft), that difference would be only 3 mm (0.12 in).
Regardless of the model, any radius falls between the polar minimum of about 6,357 km (3,950 mi) and the equatorial maximum of about 6,378 km (3,963 mi). The difference 21 km (13 mi) correspond to the polar radius being approximately 0.3% shorter than the equatorial radius.
For example, if the measurements were hypothetically performed exactly over the equator plane and either geographical pole, the radii of curvature so obtained would be related to the equatorial radius and the polar radius, respectively a and b (see: Earth polar and equatorial radius of curvature).
and and are the equatorial radius (semi-major axis) and the polar radius (semi-minor axis), respectively. = is the square of the first numerical eccentricity of the ellipsoid. = is the flattening of the ellipsoid.
At Earth's polar regions, the ocean surface is covered by seasonally variable amounts of sea ice that often connects with polar land, permafrost and ice sheets, forming polar ice caps. Earth's land covers 29.2%, or 149 million km 2 (58 million sq mi) of Earth's surface.
Jupiter’s radius is over 11 times the equatorial radius of the Earth, according to AZ Animals. How hot is the sun? Get to know the blistering temperatures of the star's surface, core.
If Earth were homogeneous the term would equal its third eccentricity squared, [35] ″ = + where a is the equatorial radius (6 378 137 m) and c is the polar radius (6 356 752 m), so e 2 = 0.003358481.