Transcript Friday, January 31 - Otterbein University

Daytime Observing: Sun, Noon,
South
Starry Monday
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On Monday, Science 237
7pm lecture “The Planets”
8pm rooftop observing
Show up for either to get 2% credit
Sun Measurement - 01
• We measured at 11:30 am on Jan 29, 2014
• Length of the shadow of a meter stick was
1.72m
• Trigonometry: 30.2 degrees (sig figs!)
Sun Measurement - 02
• We measured at 2:00 pm on Jan 29, 2014
• Length of the shadow of a meter stick was
1.69m
• Trigonometry: 30.6 degrees (sig figs!)
Is this good or bad or what?
• Compare to expected value:
– Westerville location 40° N latitude
– Celestial equator 90° off of that
• “that” being North AND 40° above horizon
– Sun’s celestial (not observer!) coordinates on
January 29: -18°, i.e. south of Celestial Equator
(see YourSky)
– So: 40° + 90 °+18 ° = 148° above N horizon
= 32° above S horizon
Define Noon
• I.e. agree on the word “noon” meaning
(being equivalent to) “time when the sun
reaches the highest altitude in the observer’s
sky”
• Note that this time is
– different when you are further east or west
– the same when you are further north or south
• Note that the sun culminates in the North in
the southern hemisphere!
Define South
• Either opposite of direction to the North
Star
• Or: direction in which the sun culminates
Why are Polaris and the Sun in
opposite directions?
• They are not exactly, because “the north
direction” and “the south direction” do not
exist
• Their positions are related because
– the direction of Polaris defines the rotation axis
of the celestial sphere
– The sun is somewhere on the sphere
– From a “skewed” perspective everything on the
sphere culminates on the meridian
Reminder: Observer Coordinates
• Horizon – the
plane you stand on
• Zenith – the point
right above you
• Meridian – the
line from North to
Zenith to south
What you see depends on where you are!
• Your local sky –
your view depends on your location on earth
Constellation 1: Orion
• “the Hunter”
• Bright Stars:
D) Betelgeuze
E) Rigel
• Deep Sky Object:
i) Orion Nebula
Constellation 2: Gemini
• “the Twins”
• zodiacal sign
• Brightest Stars:
I) Castor
J=K) Pollux
Constellation 3: Taurus
• “the Bull”
• zodiacal sign
• Brightest Star:
F) Aldebaran
• Deep Sky Object:
iii) Plejades
Constellation 4: Ursa Major
• Other name:
Big Dipper
• Stars:
B) Dubhe
C) Merak
• Navigation: go 5 times
the distance from
Merak to Dubhe and
you are at Polaris.
Constellation 5: Ursa Minor
• Other name:
Little Dipper
• α Ursa Minoris is
Polaris [A], the
pole star
Constellation 6: Canis Major
• “Big Dog”
• Stars:
H) Sirius
(brightest fixed star)
Constellation 7:
Cancer
• “Crab”
• No bright Stars
Constellation 8: Leo
• “the Lion”
• zodiacal sign
• Brightest Star:
G) Regulus
Constellation 9: Cassiopeia
• Greek mythological
figure: mother of
Andromeda
• the big “W” in the
sky
• No bright stars
Constellation 10: Pisces
• “the Fishes”
• Zodiacal sign
• No bright stars
Constellation 11: Pegasus
• Greek
mythological
figure: the
winged horse
• big rectangle in
the sky
• No bright stars
Constellation 12: Andromeda
• Greek mythological
figure: Daughter of
Queen Cassiopeia and
King Cepheus rescued
from Cetus by Perseus
• Deep Sky Object:
Andromeda
Galaxy
Position: Angles vs. Distances
• Locations in the sky are easy to measure: 2
angles
• Distances from observer are hard (one
length)
 Together they give the location of an
object in three-dimensional space
Angles and Angular Size
• Angles measured in degrees
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•
full circle = 360; right angle = 90
1 = 60' (minutes of arc or arc minutes)
1' = 60" (seconds of arc or arc seconds)
Typical angular sizes:
– Moon 0.5, Sun 0.5, Jupiter 20”, Betelgeuse (α Ori) 0.05”
The Trouble with Angles
• Angular size of an object cannot tell us its actual
size – depends on how far away it is
• Sun and Moon have very nearly the same angular
size (30' = ½) when viewed from Earth
Without Distances …
• We do not know the size of an object
• This makes it hard to figure out the “inner
workings” of an object
• We can’t picture the structure of the solar
system, galaxy, cosmos
The most important measurement
in Astronomy: Distance!
• The distances are astronomical!
• The distance scales are very different
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Solar system: light minutes
Stars: light years
Galaxies: 100,000 ly
Universe: billions of ly
• Need different “yardsticks”