Coast Guard Exams
Question 1357Navigation General70% to pass

A sidereal day is approximately how much shorter than a solar day?

AI Explanation
The correct answer is A) 4 minutes. A sidereal day, which is the time it takes for the Earth to rotate once on its axis relative to the stars, is approximately 4 minutes shorter than a solar day, which is the time it takes for the Earth to rotate once on its axis relative to the Sun. This is because the Earth's orbit around the Sun causes the position of the Sun to shift slightly relative to the stars each day, resulting in a solar day being slightly longer than a sidereal day. The other answer choices are incorrect as they do not accurately reflect the difference between a sidereal day and a solar day.

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