On 2003 august 27, mars was in opposition as seen from the Earth. On 2005 July 14 (687 days later), mars was in western quadrature as seen from the earth.
a. What was the distance of Mars from the Sun on these dates, measured in astronomical units (AU)?
b. Is this greater than or less than the semimajor axis of the Martian orbit?
You may assume the Earth's orbit is a perfect circle.
(Hint: the sidereal period of Mars is also 687 days)