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Spherical Excess Problem

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806 views3 pages

Spherical Excess Problem

REVIEW

Uploaded by

Nicole K. Martinez
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
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Download as PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
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Spherical Excess Problem.

The interior angles in triangle ABC are 𝐴 = 58°30′30", 𝐵 =


64°17′25", and 𝐶 = 57°12′17". The distance from A to B has been found from preliminary
calculations to be 36,285.55m. Assuming the average radius of curvature to be 6,372,160m,
determine the spherical excess in the triangle.

SOLUTION

Formula:
𝐴𝑟𝑒𝑎
𝑒" =
𝑅2sin 01"

Note: Based on the formula and given values, we need to compute first the area of the triangle in
order to get the spherical excess. The formula that we will use is the formula for plane triangle.

1
𝐴𝑟𝑒𝑎 = 𝑎𝑏 𝑠𝑖𝑛𝐶
2
1
𝐴𝑟𝑒𝑎 = 𝑎𝑐 𝑠𝑖𝑛𝐵
2
1
𝐴𝑟𝑒𝑎 = 𝑏𝑐 𝑠𝑖𝑛𝐴
2
Note: To calculate the area, we need to have the lengths of any two sides and their included
angle.

Solving side b using sine law

Note: In this solution we will use side b to pair with the given side c. But you can also use any
other pair.

𝑏 𝑐
=
sin 𝐵 sin 𝐶

𝑏 36,285.55
=
sin(64°17′25") sin(57°12′17")

𝑏 = 38,892.42𝑚

Solving the Area

1
𝐴𝑟𝑒𝑎 = 𝑏𝑐 𝑠𝑖𝑛𝐴
2

1
𝐴𝑟𝑒𝑎 = 38,892.42 36,285.55 𝑠𝑖𝑛 58°30′30"
2

𝐴𝑟𝑒𝑎 = 601,690,521.3 𝑚2
Solving the Spherical Excess

𝐴𝑟𝑒𝑎
𝑒" =
𝑅2
sin 01"

601,690,521.3
𝑒" =
6,372,160 2 sin 00°00′01"

𝒆" = 𝟑. 𝟎𝟔"

Note: the above spherical excess is in seconds.


1
( sin 01" converts the value directly to seconds )
180°
You can also use the traditional conversion of 𝜋 , but the value will now be in degrees,
minutes, and seconds.

601,690,521.3 180°
𝑒=
6,372,160 2 𝜋

𝑒 = 0° 0′ 𝟑. 𝟎𝟔"

Still you will get the correct value of 3.06”

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