I am asking if there is a way that a man could determine the distance from the earth to the sun without already having a baseline distance or dimension measurement to begin with, and without having any expensive, specialized equipment. If so, how could this be done?
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2$\begingroup$ For any distance measurement to work, you need a definition of a "meter" or something, right? What do you mean "without having a baseline distance"? $\endgroup$– Zo the RelativistCommented Nov 2, 2022 at 20:14
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$\begingroup$ I do not mean without having a fixed unit of measurement (miles, kilometers, etc.). I mean how can we determine the distance to the sun without having any known distances to anything else in the heavens? Is this possible? $\endgroup$– AstroCommented Nov 2, 2022 at 20:43
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3$\begingroup$ astronomy.stackexchange.com/q/6274 $\endgroup$– RaskolnikovCommented Nov 2, 2022 at 20:45
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$\begingroup$ newscientist.com/article/… Posted two days ago. It's no surprise to those of us who aren't completely indoctrinated. It's ok to say we don't know for sure. It's unfortunate that the mainstream community is do against questioning conclusions made by others that contradict one's observations and physical experiments $\endgroup$– Peter KimballCommented Nov 11, 2023 at 14:59
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1 Answer
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With triangles, provided you have figured out the radius of the Earth, which you can do by measuring the angles to a star from two locations on Earth where you assume the star is infinite distance, or many times further than the Sun.
Now do the same with the Sun where you already know the radius of the Earth. Note that any two points on the Earth form an isosceles triangle with the center of the Earth. You can also choose various locations and times to get easier geometry for the Sun.
answered Nov 2, 2022 at 23:12
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1$\begingroup$ Thank you, C. Towne Springer. Why do I need to "assume the star is infinite distance, or many times further than the Sun." I don't want to begin with any assumptions. $\endgroup$– AstroCommented Nov 3, 2022 at 20:18
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$\begingroup$ If they are very far away/infinite the light rays from the star will be parallel and have the same direction for all observers. You could measure the angle between star A over head and star B around 60 deg to the West. And a colleague who is over the horizon can measure the angle between star B overhead and star A 60 deg to the East. What would it mean if you don't measure the same angle? $\endgroup$ Commented Nov 5, 2022 at 2:01