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Showing where these formulas come from, like we did for a rectangular solid, is beyond the scope of this course. We will approximate π with 3.14 .

Volume and surface area of a sphere

For a sphere with radius r :

An image of a sphere is shown. The radius is labeled r. Beside this is Volume: V equals four-thirds times pi times r cubed. Below that is Surface Area: S equals 4 times pi times r squared.

A sphere has a radius 6 inches. Find its volume and surface area.

Solution

Step 1 is the same for both and , so we will show it just once.

Step 1. Read the problem. Draw the figure and label
it with the given information.
.
Step 2. Identify what you are looking for. the volume of the sphere
Step 3. Name. Choose a variable to represent it. let V = volume
Step 4. Translate.
Write the appropriate formula.

V = 4 3 π r 3
Step 5. Solve. V 4 3 ( 3.14 ) 6 3
V 904.32 cubic inches
Step 6. Check: Double-check your math on a calculator.
Step 7. Answer the question. The volume is approximately 904.32 cubic inches.
Step 2. Identify what you are looking for. the surface area of the cube
Step 3. Name. Choose a variable to represent it. let S = surface area
Step 4. Translate.
Write the appropriate formula.

S = 4 π r 2
Step 5. Solve. S 4 ( 3.14 ) 6 2
S 452.16
Step 6. Check: Double-check your math on a calculator
Step 7. Answer the question. The surface area is approximately 452.16 square inches.
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Find the volume and surface area of a sphere with radius 3 centimeters.

  1. 113.04 cu. cm
  2. 113.04 sq. cm

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Find the volume and surface area of each sphere with a radius of 1 foot

  1. 4.19 cu. ft
  2. 12.56 sq. ft

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A globe of Earth is in the shape of a sphere with radius 14 centimeters. Find its volume and surface area. Round the answer to the nearest hundredth.

Solution

Step 1. Read the problem. Draw a figure with the
given information and label it.
.
Step 2. Identify what you are looking for. the volume of the sphere
Step 3. Name. Choose a variable to represent it. let V = volume
Step 4. Translate.
Write the appropriate formula.
Substitute. (Use 3.14 for π )

V = 4 3 π r 3
V 4 3 ( 3.14 ) 14 3
Step 5. Solve. V 11,488.21
Step 6. Check: We leave it to you to check your calculations.
Step 7. Answer the question. The volume is approximately 11,488.12 cubic inches.
Step 2. Identify what you are looking for. the surface area of the sphere
Step 3. Name. Choose a variable to represent it. let S = surface area
Step 4. Translate.
Write the appropriate formula.
Substitute. (Use 3.14 for π )

S = 4 π r 2
S 4 ( 3.14 ) 14 2
Step 5. Solve. S 2461.76
Step 6. Check: We leave it to you to check your calculations.
Step 7. Answer the question. The surface area is approximately 2461.76 square inches.
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A beach ball is in the shape of a sphere with radius of 9 inches. Find its volume and surface area.

  1. 3052.08 cu. in.
  2. 1017.36 sq. in.

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A Roman statue depicts Atlas holding a globe with radius of 1.5 feet. Find the volume and surface area of the globe.

  1. 14.13 cu. ft
  2. 28.26 sq. ft
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Find the volume and surface area of a cylinder

If you have ever seen a can of soda, you know what a cylinder looks like. A cylinder     is a solid figure with two parallel circles of the same size at the top and bottom. The top and bottom of a cylinder are called the bases. The height h of a cylinder is the distance between the two bases. For all the cylinders we will work with here, the sides and the height, h , will be perpendicular to the bases.

Practice Key Terms 3

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Source:  OpenStax, Prealgebra. OpenStax CNX. Jul 15, 2016 Download for free at http://legacy.cnx.org/content/col11756/1.9
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