Astronomy
Astronomy
1st Edition
ISBN: 9781938168284
Author: Andrew Fraknoi; David Morrison; Sidney C. Wolff
Publisher: OpenStax
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Chapter 17, Problem 37E

You have enough information from this chapter to estimate the distance to Alpha Centauri, the second nearest star, which has an apparent magnitude of 0. Since it is a G2 star, like the Sun, assume it has the same luminosity as the Sun and the difference in magnitudes is a result only of the difference in distance. Estimate how far away Alpha Centauri is. Describe the necessary steps in words and then do the calculation. (As we will learn in the Celestial Distances chapter, this method-namely, assuming that stars with identical spectral types emit the same amount of energy-is actually used to estimate distances to stars.) If you assume the distance to the Sun is in AU, your answer will come out in AU.

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Using solar units, we find that a star has 4 times the luminosity of the Sun, a mass 1.25 times the mass of the Sun, and a surface temperature of 4090 K (take the Sun's surface temperature to be 5784 K for the sake of this problem). This means the star has a radius of....................  solar radii and is a .................... star (use the classification).
A star with spectral type A0 has a surface temperature of 9600 K and a radius of 2.2 RSun. How many times more luminous is this star than the Sun? (if it is less luminous enter a number less than one) This star has a mass of 3.3 MSun. Using the simple approximation that we made in class, what is the main sequence lifetime of this star? You may assume that the lifetime of the sun is 1010 yr. Compare this to the lifetime of a A0 star listed in Table 22.1 (computed using a more sophisticated approach). Is the value you calculated in the previous problem longer or shorter than what is reported in the table? (L for longer, S for shorter) (You only get one try at this problem.)

Chapter 17 Solutions

Astronomy

Ch. 17 - Order the seven basic spectral types from hottest...Ch. 17 - What is the defining difference between a brown...Ch. 17 - If the star Sirius emits 23 times more energy than...Ch. 17 - How would two stars of equal luminosity-one blue...Ch. 17 - Table 17.2 lists the temperature ranges that...Ch. 17 - Suppose you are given the task of measuring the...Ch. 17 - Star X has lines of ionized helium in its...Ch. 17 - The spectrum of the Sun has hundreds of strong...Ch. 17 - What are the approximate spectral classes of stars...Ch. 17 - Look at the chemical elements in Appendix K. Can...Ch. 17 - Appendix I lists some of the nearest stars. Are...Ch. 17 - Appendix J lists the stars that appear brightest...Ch. 17 - What star appears the brightest in the sky (other...Ch. 17 - Suppose hominids one million years ago had left...Ch. 17 - Why can only a lower limit to the rate of stellar...Ch. 17 - Why do you think astronomers have suggested three...Ch. 17 - Sam, a college student, just bought a new car....Ch. 17 - Would a red star have a smaller or larger...Ch. 17 - Two stars have proper motions of one arcsecond per...Ch. 17 - Suppose there are three stars in space, each...Ch. 17 - What would you say to a friend who made this...Ch. 17 - In Appendix J, how much more luminous is the most...Ch. 17 - Verify that if two stars have a difference of five...Ch. 17 - As seen from Earth, the Sun has an apparent...Ch. 17 - An astronomer is investigating a faint star that...Ch. 17 - The center of a faint but active galaxy has...Ch. 17 - You have enough information from this chapter to...Ch. 17 - Do the previous problem again, this time using the...Ch. 17 - Star A and Star B have different apparent...Ch. 17 - Star A and Star B have different apparent...Ch. 17 - The star Sirius A has an apparent magnitude of 1.5...Ch. 17 - Our Sun, a type G star, has a surface temperature...

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