Eratosthenes Project - Australia

Participants in the 2008 Eratosthenes Project can leave feedback.

RMIT University coordinates a national schools project inviting teachers and students from Years 10, 11 and 12 to re-enact Eratosthenes' famous experiment in measuring the angle of the Sun at local noon to determine the radius of the Earth. The students and teachers make their measurements during National Science Week.

Participating Science teachers register supplying their local latitude and longitude. The values for latitude and longitude can be obtained online at Geoscience Australia or from atlases, air navigation charts, markings on the edges of some topographic maps, geographic positioning systems, published locations such as airports.

Support material including student resources, submission sheets and worksheets are made available on the RMIT web site.

Each registering school is paired with another school which has as close as possible to the same longitude and as large as possible latitude difference. The two schools share measurements of the angle to the local-noon Sun to determine the radius of the Earth. Registrations open in February with partner processing beginning in July. Results and winners are announced in September.

A total prize pool of $1000 is awarded to Schools for a reasonable result for the Earth's radius and the best justified uncertainty analysis.

View 2008 details and winners

Contact Details

For further information, contact Project Coordinator Dr Alex Merchant

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