Feb. 6th’s strip conflates two different principles of celestial mechanics. The 1st panel asks a question about the rotation (spin) of the earth on its own axis. The answer provided in the 2nd panel is to a different question entirely, i.e., the revolution (orbit) of the earth around the sun. As a ballpark answer to the question posed in the 1st panel, the circumference of the earth at the equator is about 24,000 miles. Coincidently, there are 24 hours in a day, so the rotation (spin) of the earth is approximately 1,000 miles per hour.k
Feb. 6th’s strip conflates two different principles of celestial mechanics. The 1st panel asks a question about the rotation (spin) of the earth on its own axis. The answer provided in the 2nd panel is to a different question entirely, i.e., the revolution (orbit) of the earth around the sun. As a ballpark answer to the question posed in the 1st panel, the circumference of the earth at the equator is about 24,000 miles. Coincidently, there are 24 hours in a day, so the rotation (spin) of the earth is approximately 1,000 miles per hour.k