AstroA10
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Nassau Community College *
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Course
101
Subject
Astronomy
Date
Dec 6, 2023
Type
docx
Pages
3
Uploaded by DoctorTreeGoldfish41
Define the following 1. Scientific Notation-Apparent occurrences of such enormous numbers are frequent in astronomy. The use of scientific notation when dealing with very big or tiny numbers is common practice among scientists, including astronomers. When dealing with very tiny or big numbers, scientific notation may be a huge help.
2. Astronomical Unit (A. U.)- Measurement of the sky The astronomical unit is a standard measure of length equal to around 150,000,000 kilometers (8,300,000,000 miles) or 8.3 light minutes.
3. Light Year (Ly) - An astronomical unit of length, a light-year (sometimes written light year) is about equal to 9.46 trillion kilometers. If you want to talk about how far away stars are or how far away you are from anything in the galaxy, the light-year is the unit of choice, particularly in layman's terms or popular scientific publications.
4. Constellation -According to the International Astronomical Union's definition from the early 20th century, a constellation is a region of the sky. As a navigational aid, the stars and planets are
organized in a grid pattern that serves as a basis for the constellations. They are often clustered around asterisms, which are star patterns made by stars that are quite near to one another.
5. Asterism -Any grouping of stars that does not constitute a constellation is called an asterism. The Big Dipper is an asterism inside the constellation Ursa Major, yet asterisms may sometimes transcend constellation boundaries, like in the case of the Summer Triangle, which is made up of the stars Deneb, Altair, and Vega.
6. Circumpolar constellation -A circumpolar constellation is one that may be seen from everywhere on Earth and never disappears below the horizon. The stars and constellations may be broken up into two groups, according to Earth's rotation and axial tilt in relation to the Sun.
7. Zodiac constellation- To put it simply, what is a zodiacal constellation? Zodiacal constellations
are those that may be seen in the ecliptic, a band of sky that contains 12 of the sky's constellations. The zodiac is the imaginary strip of sky along which the apparent motions of the sun, moon, and planets may be seen.
8. Zodiac - The ecliptic is the plane of Earth's orbit and the Sun's apparent yearly passage through the sky; the zodiac is a belt across the skies extending 9 degrees on each side of this plane. The Moon and the major planets all have their orbits contained wholly inside the zodiac as
well.
9. Zenith - zenith, the celestial location directly above for an observer on Earth. The nadir is the point right below your feet, 180 degrees counterclockwise from the zenith. When determining the zenith of an object in the sky, one uses gravity as a reference point, much as when setting up a plumb line for a survey.
Answer the following questions. All questions must be answered in full sentences or full credit will not be given. Any question that has math associated with it you must show all work on your answers or full credit will not be given (just giving a number as an answer does not tell me that you know where the number came from). Note: A full sentence completely repeats or restates the
question within the answer.
10. Why do we use Astronomical Units and Light Years as opposed to kilometers or miles to measure distances in the universe? The vastness of the distances we encounter in space is the primary motivation for the usage of the light year as a unit of measurement. If we measure the distance to the closest star using miles or kilometers, we will rapidly get into quantities that are difficult to manage. 11. What is the difference between a solar system, a galaxy, and the universe? The primary distinction between solar systems, galaxies, and the universe is one of size and scope. Every solar system revolves around a central sun or star. There are millions or perhaps trillions of stars that make up a galaxy. Some of these stars even have planets orbiting around them. The answer, in order of smallest to biggest, is the solar system, followed by the galaxy, and
then the cosmos. Our solar system is a proper member of the Milky Way Galaxy, which itself is a
proper member of the universe. The Milky Way is only one of the numerous galaxies that may be
found in the vast expanse that is the universe.
12. We live in NYC which has a latitude of 40° N, this tells us that the radius of our circumpolar zones are 40°. What is the radius of the circumpolar zone for an observer in Hawaii with a latitude of 20° N, an observer in Bismarck, N D with a latitude of 47°N, and Salem, Or with a latitude of 43°N? For NYC
So the value of a = 1
Now for Hawaii
Radius 20 N
for Bismarch
Radius 47 N
for Salem
a= Radius/Latitude
Radius= 43 N
13. One astronomical unit is equal to 1.5 × 1011 m. Explain how this is the same as 150 × 109 m.
Show me all work that is necessary to show that you completely understand the concept.
14. The equatorial diameter of the moon is 2160 mi. If one mile is equal to 1.609 km, what is the diameter of the moon in km? 15. Venus is 0.72 A. U. from the sun. If one A. U. is 1.5 × 1011 m, how far from the sun is Venus in m? Diameter of the moon,
D= 2160 mile =(2160 mile) divided 1.609/1
3475 km
Extra Credit
1. There are an estimated 100 billion stars in our galaxy. How would you write this number in scientific notation? 1,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000 stars
2. The sun is almost 400 times further away from the Earth than the moon is from the Earth. If it takes light from the sun 8.3 minutes to reach the Earth, how long will it take for light from the Earth to reach the moon?
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