Coordinates HW Ast.
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School
Durham Technical Community College *
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Course
230
Subject
Astronomy
Date
Dec 6, 2023
Type
Pages
3
Uploaded by AmbassadorComputerHorse22
1.)Depending on your location on the globe, there may be constellations which never set (day or
night, any time of the year). These are known as circumpolar constellations because they never
set–they are always completely above the horizon. Zoom all the way out on your screen and
animate. Which of the following constellations are circumpolar? NOTE: The list of circumpolar
constellations is different at different locations on Earth.HINT:Move forward in one day steps for
a year using the animate button described above.
a.Sagittarius- not circumpolar
b.Orion- Not circumpolar
c.Ursa Minor (LittleDipper)-circumpolar
d.Pegasus- not circumpolar
e.Cassiopeia- not circumpolar
f.Leo- not circumpolar
g.Hercules- not circumpolar
2.)What specific star do all of the constellations circle around?
Polaris
Questions #3-5 will show you how the sky changes based on your location. You will need to
change your location withinSky Safari frequently.Change your location to any point on the
equator for Question #3.
3.)Which of the following constellations are circumpolar if you are on the equator (0° latitude)?
a.Sagittarius - not circumpolar
b.Orion- circumpolar
c.Ursa Minor (Little Dipper)- not circumpolar
d.Pegasus- not circumpolar
e.Cassiopeia- circumpolar
f.Leo- not circumpolar
g.Hercules- not circumpolar
4.)Which of the following constellations are circumpolar if you are at the North Pole (90°
latitude)?
a.Sagittarius- not circumpolar
b.Orion- not circumpolar
c.Ursa Minor (Little Dipper)- circumpolar
d.Ursa Major (Big Dipper)- circumpolar
e.Pegasus- circumpolar
f.Cassiopeia- circumpolar
g.Leo- circumpolar
h.Hercules- circumpolar
5.)This question requires changing your location multiple times. Select the North Star
(Polaris) and record the star’s altitude in the table below. Then reset your location to
each of the coordinates provided in the table. Find the altitude of the North Star at each
location.What pattern do you see?
The altitude for Polaris kept changing and going up but it was always very close to what
the latitude was.
6.)List all planets that are up at the time and date given above.If you zoom all the way
out you should see a bold white line. This is the ecliptic(also known as the Celestial
Equator). By definition, the Sun will always lie somewhere along this line. All of the
planets are within just a few degrees of the ecliptic.
Venus, Uranus, Jupiter, mars, Neptune, and mercury
7.)Which planet appears closest to the Sun in the sky?
Jupiter
8.)What constellation is Mars in?
Sagittarius
9.)Do a search for Sun & Planets. The objects which are slightly grayed-out are not up
at the time for which the app is set(they are below the horizon). One by one, go through
each of the planets which are not up and look at their altitudes. What pattern do you
notice?
The altitudes are all different for all the planets depending how close they are but all the
planets below the horizon started with a negative sign rather than a +.
Location #
Latitude
Longitude
Altitude of Polaris
1
90 N
84 W
89.359243
2
75 N
84 W
74.440
3
35 N
84 W
34.464243
4
15 N
84 W
14.504237
5
0 N
84 W
0.012813
10.)One of the things everyone usually likes to know is what planets are visible at any
given time.Just because a planet is above the horizon does not mean it is visible!
a.If you tap on any object there will be a pop-up which will appear for only a few
moments at the top center of the screen. It will tell you the name of the object and its
apparent magnitude. How bright is Uranus at the time and date given?
Magnitude 5.9 12 pm Jan 16, 2009
b.Would it be visible to the naked eye under good dark skies?
No
c.With the planet selected, tap on the Info button.What is the altitude of Uranus at the
given time and date?
+40.507489
11.)Theoretically, what is the best time to observe the Andromeda Galaxy (M31)on this
date?
Monday 2009 March, 16
12.)Now switch locations! Change to Santiago,Chile by searching for a new
location:Settings->Location and use“ChooseLocation from List”.What would be the best
time to observe the AndromedaGalaxy on this date from Chile?(NOTE: Sky Safari
changes the time when you change locations due to the change in time zones. Make
sure you reset your time and date after changing locations)
June 13, 2009 on a Saturday
13.)You may find the RA-Dec coordinates of any object in the same way you looked up
their Alt-Az coordinates. Either search for the object or select it on your screen and tap
Info. For example, what are the RA-Dec coordinates of the Orion Nebula (M42)?
R.A. (2009) 05 h 35 m 52.69s
Dec (2009) -05 degrees 26’ 34.9”
14.)One of the nice things about the Celestial Coordinate system (RA-Dec–also known
as theEquatorial System) is that the coordinates behave differently than in other
coordinate systems. Do a search for the Sombrero Galaxy and use it to help you
determine the following:
a.Do Alt-Az coordinates change depending on the date and time?
Yes the alt. Is +0.352’?sec
And the az is -20.772”/sec
b.Do RA-Dec coordinates change depending on the date and time?
Yes
c.Do Alt-Az coordinates change depending on your location on Earth?
Yes
d.Do RA-Dec coordinates change depending on your location on Earth?
No
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