Physics: Principles with Applications (7th Edition)

Published by Pearson
ISBN 10: 0-32162-592-7
ISBN 13: 978-0-32162-592-2

Chapter 1 - Introduction, Measurement, Estimating - General Problems - Page 19: 40

Answer

$1 \times 10^{-5} \%$ ; 8 significant figures.

Work Step by Step

Percentage uncertainty = $\frac{2 m}{20000000 m} \times 100 \%=1 \times 10^{-5} \%$. If a distance of 20,000,000 m changes to 20,000,002 m, the GPS has to be able to tell the difference. Distances must be measured to 8 significant figures.
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