Question

Mercury, Venus, and Earth are the three planets closest to the sun. Would their combined distance from the sun be greater or less than the distance from the sun to Neptune? Show your work and justify your answer.

Answer 1

Distance to sun from Mercury = 33.582 million mi
Distance to sun from Venus = 67.24 million mi
Distance to sun from Earth = 92.96 million mi
Distance to sun from Neptune = 2.793 billion mi
The combine distance from sun to Mercury, Venus, Earth = 33.582 + 67.24 + 92.96 = 193.78 million mi
Which is less than the distance from the sun to Neptune.
193.78 million mi < 2.793 billion mi