What is an oblate spheroid?
Understand the Problem
The question is asking for a definition or explanation of what an oblate spheroid is, which involves its shape and properties. An oblate spheroid is a three-dimensional shape that is flattened at the poles and bulges at the equator, resembling a stretched sphere.
Answer
An oblate spheroid is a flattened sphere formed by rotating an ellipse about its minor axis.
An oblate spheroid is a shape formed by rotating an ellipse about its minor axis, resulting in a flattened sphere at the poles and a widened equator. This geometric form is exemplified by planets like Earth.
Answer for screen readers
An oblate spheroid is a shape formed by rotating an ellipse about its minor axis, resulting in a flattened sphere at the poles and a widened equator. This geometric form is exemplified by planets like Earth.
More Information
The oblate spheroid shape is common in astronomy, as many planets, including Earth, have this shape due to their rotation. Earth's rotation causes a bulge at the equator, making it an oblate spheroid rather than a perfect sphere.
Sources
- Oblate Spheroid - Wolfram MathWorld - mathworld.wolfram.com
- Oblate spheroid - Simple English Wikipedia - simple.wikipedia.org
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