Lab 4

Name:_______ ___________ Date:______ _____ PHYS 110L Lab # 4 Comparing the Solar System to Extra-solar Planets 1 Learning Objectives: In this lab assignment you will conduct a series of inquiries to compare/contrast solar system planets orbiting the Sun and planets orbiting other stars (extra-solar planets). Equipment: access to http://exoplanet.eu/catalog , Solar System data table (see below), calculator Instructions: Please read and follow the steps described below and answer all questions. If possible, please make bar charts using Excel. View the following video: Making a Simple Bar Graph in Excel – YouTube ( https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_Txpfyn4ipI ) . An Excel file containing data from the table below is provided in the “Lab 4” link on Blackboard. Solar System Planetary Data Table Name Mass (M Earth ) Mass (M Jupiter ) Period (Earth-Years) [Earth-Days] Semi-Major Axis Distance (AU) Object Name How many times larger than (or fraction of) Earth’s mass How many times larger than (or fraction of) Jupiter’s mass How many Earth-Years the planet takes to orbit our Sun How many Earth-Sun distances away the planet orbits our Sun Mercury 0.06 0.0002 0.24 [88] 0.39 Venus 0.82 0.003 0.62 [226] 0.72 Earth 1.00 0.003 1.00 [365] 1.00 Mars 0.11 0.0003 1.88 [687] 1.52 Jupiter 318 1.00 11.86 [4,328] 5.20 Saturn 95.2 0.299 29.5 [10,775] 9.54 Uranus 14.5 0.046 84.0 [30,681] 19.2 Neptune 17.1 0.054 165 [60,266] 30.1 Pluto* 0.002 0.00001 249 [90,947] 39.5 1 Modified from Engaging in Astronomical Inquiry , by S. J. Slater, T. F. Slater, and D. J. Lyons, 2010, W. H. Freeman and Company. 1

Note: Pluto is currently not defined as a planet by the International Astronomical Union, but for this lab we will include Pluto in our analysis. Part #1 Exploration of Solar System Planets In this section you will construct bar charts based on the table of Solar System data . Note that the data table is available as an Excel file in Blackboard in the Lab 4 link. An example of a bar chart is given below: A bar chart is a diagram in which numbers are represented by vertical or horizontal bars. For example, the bar chart above gives the number of people from a sample who selected their favorite color as either red, blue, green, or yellow. Notice that the number of people that selected red is 17 (as indicated by the left-most vertical bar), 10 people picked blue, 5 people selected green, and 7 people choose yellow. Step 1. Sketch a bar chart using two vertical bars, on the diagram provided below, for the number of planets closer or equal and farther than the Earth’s orbital distance (please use the Solar System data table). 2

Step 4. A correlation diagram is a graph of dots showing how two properties or variables are related. Use the Solar System data table to sketch a correlation diagram of semi-major axis distance (AU) on the vertical y -axis versus period (years) on the horizontal x -axis for planets closer to the Sun than Jupiter (do not include Jupiter). You should have four dots on your plot. Step 5. Use the Solar System data table to sketch a correlation diagram of semi-major axis distance (AU) on the vertical y -axis versus period (years) on the horizontal x -axis for planets 4

equal to and further away from the Sun than Jupiter (include Jupiter). You should have 5 dots on your plot. Step 6. Use the Solar System data table to sketch a correlation diagram of semi-major axis distance (AU) on the vertical y -axis versus mass ( ? 𝐸𝑎𝑟𝑡ℎ ) on the horizontal x -axis for all planets in the Solar System. You should have 9 dots on your plot. 5

________________ Semi-Major Axis Length:_____0.071__________ Discovery (year):____________2023__________ Update (date):___________09/19/2023______________ Question 2: Is this planet more massive than the Earth? Yes or No? If so, how many times more massive? _________25.1__________ Question 3: Is this planet more massive than Jupiter? Yes or No? If so, how many times more massive? _________N/A___________ Step 8. Make histograms (bar charts) of extra-solar planet data by selecting Diagrams in the top banner (to the right of Exoplanet.edu ). Click on Histogram plot near the top-right of the webpage. Step 9. In the panel on the right under X axis , select Semi-Major Axis from the drop-down menu. Under the log scale button, set min to 0 and max to 10 (AU), and hit enter on your keyboard. Make sure that the log scale button is unchecked . The displayed plot should have a scale on the horizonal x -axis that ranges from 0 to 10 AU. Question 4: How many extra-solar planets are shown in this data set? To find out, scroll down the page and look under the Statistics heading for Represented planets . Represented Planets:________3573__________ Question 5: How many of the currently known extra-solar planets have orbits larger than Jupiter’s orbit around our Sun but less than 10 AU? Hint: Change the min value from 0 to 5.20, keep the max value at 10 AU, and record the Represented planets number below. 7

Represented Planets:_________78__________ Question 6: What is the percentage of currently known extra-solar planets that have orbits larger than Jupiter’s orbit around the Sun but less than 10 AU? Hint: To find percentage, divide your represented planets number by the total number in the database and multiply by 100 . Percentage:____________ 1.417409% ______________ Question 7: How many of the currently known extra-solar planets have orbits smaller than Earth’s orbit around the Sun? Hint: Change the min value to 0 and the max value to 1 . Represented Planets:_________2801__________ Question 8: What is the percentage of currently known extra-solar planets that have orbits smaller than Earth’s orbit around the Sun? Percentage:____________ 50.89951% _______________ Step 10. Under X-axis in the drop-down menu, change the setting to be Orbital Period . For the min value enter 0 and for the max value use 900 (days). Make sure that the log scale button is unchecked and that the new plot shows the appropriate horizontal x -axis scale ranging from 0 to 900 days. Question 9: How many extra-solar planets in total (represented planets) are shown in this data set? Represented Planets:___________4630__________ 8

Question 14: What percentage of the extra-solar planets shown have orbital periods similar to planet Jupiter? Percentage:_____________0%________________ Question 15: Consider the following statement, “Most extra-solar planets discovered take about the same length of time to orbit their star as Earth takes to orbit the Sun.” Would you agree or disagree with this generalization base on the evidence you collected by looking at the range of possible orbital periods? Explain your reasoning. I would disagree because there was only one planet that had a similar orbital period to Earth, and that’s 1/5503. Conclusion. Please provide feedback regarding the lab assignment. Are there things that you liked or disliked? Thanks!! 10