ART
BEAUTY & WELLNESS
CRAFT
CULTURE & HISTORY
ENTERTAINMENT
ENVIRONMENT
FOOD & DRINKS
GREEN FUTURE
REVERSE ENGINEERING
SCHOOL PROJECTS
SCIENCES
SPORTS
TECHNOLOGY
WEARABLES
Measuring the Circumference of the Earth — Eratosthenes' Shadow Method
Around 240 BC the Greek scholar Eratosthenes, chief librarian at Alexandria, measured the size of the whole Earth with nothing but a vertical stick, its shadow, and a known distance. He knew that at noon on the summer solstice the Sun stood directly over Syene (modern Aswan) — sunlight reached the bottom of a deep well and cast no shadow. At Alexandria, far to the north, a vertical rod at the same moment cast a shadow of about 7.2°. That angle is one-fiftieth of a full circle, so the Earth's circumference had to be fifty times the distance between the two cities. This blueprint reproduces his measurement with a gnomon and a plumb line — and lands within a few percent of the true value, as he did.
Intermediate
3
Instructions
1
1
Understand the principle
Understand the principle
The Sun is so far away that its rays reach Earth effectively parallel. If a vertical rod casts no shadow at one place and a shadow at another at the very same moment, the shadow angle equals the difference in latitude between the two places. Measure that angle and the ground distance, and simple proportion gives the whole circumference.
2
2
Build a vertical gnomon
Build a vertical gnomon
Fix a straight dowel upright at the centre of a flat board — this is the gnomon. Hang a plumb line (a string with a small weight) beside it and adjust until the rod is exactly parallel to the string, so it is truly vertical. Any lean will spoil the angle.
Materials for this step:
Dowel Rod1 piece
Red Alder Board1 pieceTools needed:
Cotton Kitchen String3
3
Find true north and the noon line
Find true north and the noon line
Mark the north-south meridian line across the board so you can recognise local solar noon — the instant the shadow is shortest and points due north. A gnomon's shadow swings shortest exactly at midday.
Tools needed:
Chalk Line4
4
Measure at solar noon
Measure at solar noon
At local solar noon (ideally on the summer solstice, when the effect is largest and matches Eratosthenes' day), the shadow is at its shortest. This is the single moment when you take your reading.
5
5
Mark and measure the shadow
Mark and measure the shadow
Mark the tip of the shadow with chalk. Measure the shadow's length from the base of the rod to that mark, and measure the height of the rod above the board. Record both lengths carefully in the same units.
Tools needed:
Chalk LineCotton Kitchen String6
6
Work out the shadow angle
Work out the shadow angle
The angle of the Sun from vertical equals arctan(shadow length ÷ rod height). Eratosthenes found this angle to be about 7.2°. Because 360° ÷ 7.2° = 50, his shadow angle was exactly one-fiftieth of a full circle.
7
7
Take the north-south distance
Take the north-south distance
You need the distance due north-south to a place where the Sun is overhead (no shadow) at that same moment. Eratosthenes used Syene, about 5,000 stadia — roughly 800 km — south of Alexandria. Use a known map distance between your site and that reference latitude.
Tools needed:
Cotton Kitchen String8
8
Compute the circumference
Compute the circumference
Since the shadow angle is one-fiftieth of a circle, the full circumference is fifty times the distance: 50 × 800 km = 40,000 km. Eratosthenes' own figures gave 50 × 5,000 = 250,000 stadia. In general, circumference = distance × (360° ÷ shadow angle).
9
9
Check against the true value
Check against the true value
The Earth's real circumference is about 40,075 km around the equator. A careful reading with a stick and its shadow lands within a few percent — the same accuracy Eratosthenes reached around 240 BC, proving the size of the planet can be found from a shadow and a length of string.
Connected Blueprint Materials
You can swap these in
Can't get one of the materials? Swap it for an equivalent — these work just as well.
- Instead of Dowel Rod, try:
Pine Dowel Rod Set (12 Diameters)
Dowel Rod Assortment (12 Sizes) - Instead of Chalk Line, try:
Fishing Line (Monofilament)
Drying Line
Nylon Monofilament Line (0.3mm, 50m)
Nylon Fret Line - Instead of Cotton Kitchen String, try:
Violin String Set (Full Size, Synthetic Core)
Guitar String Set (Acoustic, Phosphor Bronze)
Bow String
Recommended for this build
Products makers often use with builds like this one.
KnifeUsed together and in similar builds
AwlFrequently used with this build's materials
Hand SawUsed together and in similar builds
Sloyd Carving KnifeFrequently used with this build's materials
PVA Wood GlueFrequently used with this build's materials
Hardwood BlockUsed together and in similar builds
Ankle Weight Set (Adjustable, DIY)Used in similar builds
Hemp CordFrequently used with this build's materialsRelated Blueprints
These blueprints share knowledge with this one — techniques, materials, or principles that connect them in the learning graph.
Related blueprints
Other builds that share materials, tools, or techniques with this one.
Measuring the Earth from a Single Mountain — Al-Biruni's Horizon-Dip Method
Measuring How Far the Sun Is Compared to the Moon — Aristarchus' Half-Moon Method
Making a Bronze Awl — The Leatherworker's Piercing ToolMetalworking
Understanding Whale Oil from Blubber Rendering — The Fuel That Lit the World Before Petroleumbiology
Peppermint Tea for Digestive Relief — The Cooling Herb That Calms the StomachBiology
Making a Hammerstone — The First Tool in Human Historystoneworking
CC0 Public Domain
This blueprint is released under CC0. You are free to copy, modify, distribute, and use this work for any purpose, without asking permission.
Support the Maker by purchasing products through their Blueprint where they earn a Maker Commission set by Vendors, or create a new iteration of this Blueprint and include it as a connection in your own Blueprint to share revenue.