Life in the Universe (4th Edition)
4th Edition
ISBN: 9780134089089
Author: Jeffrey O. Bennett, Seth Shostak
Publisher: PEARSON
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Question
Chapter 3, Problem 10RQ
To determine
Describe the meaning of observable universe and how big is it.
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Check out a sample textbook solutionStudents have asked these similar questions
Your friends are talking about Olber's Paradox:
Friend 1: When the universe was quite young, it was also quite small, and therefore light
was trapped inside the universe. This is why we don't see light from the edge of the
universe in every direction.
Friend 2: No, Olber's Paradox describes only light from stars, not from galaxies, and why
you can't use light from distant stars to see at night.
Friend 3: You're both right and you're both wrong. The paradox concerns itself with the
expansion of the universe, and explains why light from the early universe was able to be
released.
Are any of them right, in part or in whole?
For the graph shown above, a) what quantity would you label the y-axis with if the distance is between galaxies and the Earth? Explain your answer. Think through what we know is happening, motion-wise, out there in the galaxy. b) Also explain why you think there are dots and a solid line, on the graph.
Consider three periods in the history of the Universe: one million years after the Big Bang (age = 1 million years), about five billion
years ago (age = 9 billion years), and today. What is the ranking in the expansion rate of the Universe in these three period, from
fastest to slowest expansion:
O 1 million years, today, 9 billion years.
today, 1 million years, 9 billion years.
today, 9 billion years, 1 million years.
O 1 million years, 9 billion years, today.
Chapter 3 Solutions
Life in the Universe (4th Edition)
Ch. 3 - List three major ideas of astronomy that help...Ch. 3 - Briefly define and describe each of the various...Ch. 3 - Describe the solar system as it looks on the...Ch. 3 - Prob. 4RQCh. 3 - Prob. 5RQCh. 3 - Prob. 6RQCh. 3 - Prob. 7RQCh. 3 - What do we mean when we say that Earth and life...Ch. 3 - Imagine describing the cosmic calendar to a...Ch. 3 - Prob. 10RQ
Ch. 3 - Prob. 11RQCh. 3 - Prob. 12RQCh. 3 - What is the difference between matter in the...Ch. 3 - Define and give examples of kinetic energy,...Ch. 3 - Prob. 15RQCh. 3 - Prob. 16RQCh. 3 - Briefly describe the four major features of our...Ch. 3 - Briefly describe the nebular theory and how it...Ch. 3 - What was the close encounter hypothesis for our...Ch. 3 - How have recent discoveries led scientists to...Ch. 3 - Prob. 21TYUCh. 3 - At a middle school talent show, 14-year-old Sam...Ch. 3 - SETI researchers announced today that if they...Ch. 3 - A noted physicist today announced that he has...Ch. 3 - Prob. 25TYUCh. 3 - Astronomers have discovered a galaxy in the far...Ch. 3 - Inventor John Johnson has patented a device that...Ch. 3 - Prob. 28TYUCh. 3 - Prob. 29TYUCh. 3 - Using new, powerful telescopes, biologists today...Ch. 3 - Prob. 31TYUCh. 3 - Prob. 32TYUCh. 3 - A television advertisement claiming that a product...Ch. 3 - When we say the universe is expanding, we mean...Ch. 3 - Prob. 35TYUCh. 3 - The age of our solar system is about (a) one-third...Ch. 3 - Prob. 37TYUCh. 3 - How many of the planets orbit the Sun in the same...Ch. 3 - Prob. 39TYUCh. 3 - Prob. 40TYUCh. 3 - Explaining the Past. Is it really possible for...Ch. 3 - A Strange Star System. Suppose that we discovered...Ch. 3 - Prob. 44IFCh. 3 - Alien Technology. Some people believe that Earth...Ch. 3 - Atomic Terminology Practice. a. The most common...Ch. 3 - Prob. 49IFCh. 3 - Prob. 50IFCh. 3 - Patterns of Motion. In one or two paragraphs,...Ch. 3 - Two Kinds of Planets. The jovian planets differ...Ch. 3 - Pluto and Eris. How does the nebular theory...Ch. 3 - Rocks from Other Solar Systems. Many leftovers...Ch. 3 - Prob. 55IFCh. 3 - Prob. 56IFCh. 3 - Scale of the Solar System. The real diameters of...Ch. 3 - Prob. 58IFCh. 3 - Prob. 59IFCh. 3 - Prob. 60IFCh. 3 - Prob. 61IFCh. 3 - Prob. 62IFCh. 3 - Prob. 63IFCh. 3 - Prob. 67WPCh. 3 - Tour of the Solar System. Visit one of the many...
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- What does it mean to say that the universe is expanding? What is expanding? For example, is your astronomy classroom expanding? Is the solar system? Why or why not?arrow_forwardSuppose we look at two distant galaxies: Galaxy 1 is twice as far away as Galaxy 2. In this case, A. Galaxy 1 must be twice as big as Galaxy 2. B. we are seeing Galaxy 1 as it looked at an earlier time in the history of the universe than Galaxy 2. C. we are seeing Galaxy 1 as it looked at a later time in the history of the universe than Galaxy 2. D. Galaxy 2 must be twice as old as Galaxy 1.arrow_forwardTry Now ... .... Listed below are some distances from Earth to other objects in the Milky Way galaxy. Convert each distance to light-years. (Each of these distances is less than one light-year. For an added challenge, convert each distance to light minutes or light seconds.) 1. The distance from Earth to the Moon is about 384,400 km. How many light-years is this? 2. The distance from Earth to Mars is about 784,000,000 km. How many light-years is this? 3. The distance from Earth to Pluto is about 5,750,000,000 km. How many light-years is this?arrow_forward
- mathematician Archimedes, responding to a claim that the number of grains of sand was infinite, calculated that the number of grains of sand needed to fill the universe was on the order of 1063. Our understanding of the size of the universe has changed since then, and we now know that the observable universe alone is a sphere with a radius of 1026 m. Estimating the size of a grain of sand, A) Approximately how many grains of sand would fill the observable universe? B) How many times larger or smaller is this number than Archimedes' result?arrow_forwardPlease help answer this questionsarrow_forwardAssume the observable Universe is charge neutral, and that it contains n nuclei (hydrogen plus helium nuclei, ignoring other elements). Take the helium mass fraction as 1/4. How many electrons are there in the observable Universe? Enter your answer in scientific notation with one decimal place. Value: n = 4*1080arrow_forward
- State three pieces of evidence that support the idea that the Universe began in a hot Big Bang, and explain how each piece of evidence supports the hot Big Bang model. Describe the ob- servational evidence that supports the idea that the Universe is pervaded by Dark Energy, and explain why each piece of evidence you cite supports the Dark Energy model.arrow_forwardWhat is the the steady-state theory of the universe, and why was it abandoned? What theory do we recognize today for explanation of the creation of the universe?arrow_forwardMeasure the length of the meter stick using your ruler. How many ‘rulers’ is equal to the length of the meter stick?arrow_forward
- Hubble's law. Hubble found that distant galaxies are receding with a velocity proportional to their distance from where we are on Earth. For the ith Galaxy, vi=H0ri With us at the origin. Show that this recession of the galaxies from us does not imply that we are at the center of the universe. Specifically, take the Galaxy at r1 as a New origin and show that Hubble's law is still obeyed.arrow_forwardIf we assume that the universe has been expanding at its current rate for its entire history, how old is the universe?arrow_forwardStuck on homework, especially the significant part. If the value of the Hubble constant is 70 kilometers per second per Mpc, then what is the Hubble time – that is, the amount of time the universe has been expanding since the Big Bang? Give your answer first in units of seconds, and then in units of billions of years. Your answer is significant to two digits.arrow_forward
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