DOCSLIB.ORG

Stars and the Solar System

Total Page：16

File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb

Download full-text PDF Read full-text

Load more

Chapter STARS AND THE SOLAR SYSTEM f you look at the sky, during the night time, you will notice that it is full of tiny shinning objects. Some of these I objects are very bright while others are dim. Most of these objects seem to be twinkling. The reality is that, not all of the objects in the sky can be seen with the naked eye i.e., without a telescope. It is our solar system which is full of these bright objects. So, let’s study the solar system in Fig. 12.1 The night sky this chapter in more detail. 12.1 Celestial Bodies The sun, the moon and all the objects shinning in the night sky are known as the Celestial bodies. Did you know? This includes every natural object that is located If you draw a dot in a picture of night sky, it will contain millions outside the Earth’s atmosphere, such as the of stars in that single dot. Moon, the Sun, an asteroid, planet or star. The Kuiper Belt contains many such celestial bodies. Some of these bodies are very large and hot. They are composed of gases and have their own heat and light. They emit heat in large amounts. Such huge bodies are known as stars i.e., sun. 12.2 Constellations Further, when you look at the night sky, you will see fascinating patterns formed by the different groups of stars, which are called constellations. Fig. 12.2 Some of the Constellations Stars and the solar system Ursa Major, one of the famous constellations, lies in the northern sky. It is known as “the great bear” or “the big dipper” or the Saptarishi because there are seven prominent stars in this constellation. It appears like a big ladle or an upside-down question mark. In ancient times, people use a star to determine directions during the night time. The North Star known as the pole star indicates the north direction. You can Fig. 12.3 Locating Pole Star locate the pole star with the help of the Saptarishi. Activity 12.1 Observe the night for 10 consecutive days and draw the patterns which you see among the stars. Does any of the patterns match with any constellation? If yes, name it. 12.3 The Solar System Apart from these, there are some celestial bodies that do not emit heat and light. They are eliminated by the light of the stars. Such bodies are called planets and their satellites. The sun and the other celestial bodies which revolve around it due to the gravitational pull of sun, form the solar system. There are eight planets in the solar system which are: Mercury, Venus, Earth, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus and Neptune (in their order of distance from the sun). Let’s know about some members of the solar family. Fig. 12.4 Our Solar System 2 Stars and the solar system 12.3.1 The Sun The sun is the centre of the solar system. It is huge in size and made up entirely of hot gasses. It is the primary source of heat and light for the entire solar system. Fig. 12.5 The Sun 12.3.2 The Planets Planets are also round in shape like stars but they do not emit their own light. They only reflect the sunlight which falls on them from their star. The simplest method for distinguishing planets from stars is that stars twinkle but planets do not. The path on which a planet revolves around the sun is called an orbit. The time taken by a planet to complete one revolution around the sun is called its period of revolution. Mercury (Budh) It is the nearest planet to the sun. Also the smallest. It can be observed just before sunrise or just after sunset. Venus (Shukra) It is the brightest planet in the night sky. Sometimes it appears in the eastern sky before sunrise, sometimes int the western sky just after sunset. Earth (Prithvi) It is the only planet in solar system where life exists. It has only 1 moon. Mars (Mangal) It appears slightly reddish planet therefore, it is also called the red planet. It has 2 small moons. 3 Stars and the solar system Jupiter (Brihaspati) It is the largest planet of our solar system. About 1300 earth can be placed inside Jupiter. It has a large number of moons. Saturn (Shani) It is the second largest planet in our solar system. The unique thing about Saturn is its beautiful rings. It also has a large no. of moons. Also, it is so light that it can float on water. Uranus (Aruna) It also has some faint rings but they cant be seen easily due to its highly tiltedf axis. Neptune (Varuna) The outer most planet of our solar system which is maily consists of methane. 12.3.3 The moon The day on which the whole disc of the moon is visible is known as full moon day. After that, every night the size of the bright part of the moon gets thinner and thinner. On the fifteenth day, the moon is not visible which is known as the new moon day. Then again on the fifteenth day, we get a full moon. The various shapes of the moon which we get to see during a month are called the phases of the moon. Fig. 12.5 The phases of the moon 4 Stars and the solar system Activity 12.2 Observe the moon for a month and draw the phases of moon on each day. Mark the main events such as Full moon and New moon. NN 12.4 Some other members of our solar system There are some other celestial bodies which revolve around the sun. Let us learn about the other members of our solar system. 12.4.1 Asteroids There is a huge gap between the orbits of Mars and Jupiter. This gap is filled with a large number of small objects that revolve around the sun. They are called asteroids. But they only can be seen through a large telescope. Fig. 12.6 Asteroid Belt 12.4.2 Comets Another part of our solar system, Comets revolve around the sun in highly elliptical orbits. However, their revolution period around the sun is usually very long. A comet appears generally as a bright head with a long tail. The length of the tail is always directed away from the sun. Fig. 12.7 Halley’s Comet Did you know? Many comets appear periodically. One such comet is Halley’s comet, which appears after nearly every 76 years. Last, it was seen in 1986. When can we see it again? 5 Stars and the solar system 12.4.3 Meteors and Meteorites When the night sky is clear and the moon is not there, you can sometimes see bright streaks of light. These are commonly known as meteors. They are small objects that occasionally enters the earth’s atmosphere. The friction due to the atmosphere heats it up. It glows bright and Fig. 12.8 A meteor evaporate easily before hitting the surface. But some are large in size so they reach the earth’s surface. They are called meteorites. WHAT DID WE LEARN? KEYWORDS • Stars are celestial bodies which • Celestial Bodies emit the heat and light of their • Kuiper Belt own. • Constellations • Plants do not emit light and heat • Ursa Major of their own. • Pole Star • Constellations are group of stars • Orbit which form a fixed pattern in the • Asteroids night sky. • Comets • Solar system consists of eight • Meteors planets and a lot of asteroids, • Meteorites comets and meteors. • A body which revolves around another body is called its satellite. • Moon is the natural satellite of TO KNOW MORE the earth. • • Our solar system: Venus is the brightest planet and https://youtu.be/libKVRa01L8 the Jupiter is the largest planet in the solar system. • Constellations: https://youtu.be/uKXBtWHExwQ • Comets: https://youtu.be/EvhJgAOky-E 6 Stars and the solar system UNDERSTAND IT BETTER 7 .
Recommended publications
  • Gerbert of Aurillac: Astronomy and Geometry in Tenth Century Europe

    Gerbert of Aurillac: Astronomy and Geometry in Tenth Century Europe

    October 25, 2018 15:56 WSPC/INSTRUCTION FILE Sigismondi-Gerbert International Journal of Modern Physics: Conference Series c World Scientific Publishing Company GERBERT OF AURILLAC: ASTRONOMY AND GEOMETRY IN TENTH CENTURY EUROPE COSTANTINO SIGISMONDI Sapienza University of Rome, Physics Dept., and Galileo Ferraris Institute P.le Aldo Moro 5 Roma, 00185, Italy. e-mail: [email protected] University of Nice-Sophia Antipolis - Dept. Fizeau (France); IRSOL, Istituto Ricerche Solari di Locarno (Switzerland) Received 6 Feb 2012 Revised Day Month Year Gerbert of Aurillac was the most prominent personality of the tenth century: as- tronomer, organ builder and music theoretician, mathematician, philosopher, and finally pope with the name of Silvester II (999-1003). Gerbert introduced firstly the arabic num- bers in Europe, invented an abacus for speeding the calculations and found a rational approximation for the equilateral triangle area, in the letter to Adelbold here discussed. Gerbert described a semi-sphere to Constantine of Fleury with built-in sighting tubes, used for astronomical observations. The procedure to identify the star nearest to the North celestial pole is very accurate and still in use in the XII century, when Computa- trix was the name of Polaris. For didactical purposes the Polaris would have been precise enough and much less time consuming, but here Gerbert was clearly aligning a precise equatorial mount for a fixed instrument for accurate daytime observations. Through the sighting tubes it was possible to detect equinoxes and solstices by observing the Sun in the corresponding days. The horalogium of Magdeburg was probably a big and fixed- mount nocturlabe, always pointing the star near the celestial pole.
  • The Dunhuang Chinese Sky: a Comprehensive Study of the Oldest Known Star Atlas

    The Dunhuang Chinese Sky: a Comprehensive Study of the Oldest Known Star Atlas

    25/02/09JAHH/v4 1 THE DUNHUANG CHINESE SKY: A COMPREHENSIVE STUDY OF THE OLDEST KNOWN STAR ATLAS JEAN-MARC BONNET-BIDAUD Commissariat à l’Energie Atomique ,Centre de Saclay, F-91191 Gif-sur-Yvette, France E-mail: [email protected] FRANÇOISE PRADERIE Observatoire de Paris, 61 Avenue de l’Observatoire, F- 75014 Paris, France E-mail: [email protected] and SUSAN WHITFIELD The British Library, 96 Euston Road, London NW1 2DB, UK E-mail: [email protected] Abstract: This paper presents an analysis of the star atlas included in the medieval Chinese manuscript (Or.8210/S.3326), discovered in 1907 by the archaeologist Aurel Stein at the Silk Road town of Dunhuang and now held in the British Library. Although partially studied by a few Chinese scholars, it has never been fully displayed and discussed in the Western world. This set of sky maps (12 hour angle maps in quasi-cylindrical projection and a circumpolar map in azimuthal projection), displaying the full sky visible from the Northern hemisphere, is up to now the oldest complete preserved star atlas from any civilisation. It is also the first known pictorial representation of the quasi-totality of the Chinese constellations. This paper describes the history of the physical object – a roll of thin paper drawn with ink. We analyse the stellar content of each map (1339 stars, 257 asterisms) and the texts associated with the maps. We establish the precision with which the maps are drawn (1.5 to 4° for the brightest stars) and examine the type of projections used.
  • Chapter 3: Familiarizing Yourself with the Night Sky

    Chapter 3: Familiarizing Yourself with the Night Sky

    Chapter 3: Familiarizing Yourself With the Night Sky Introduction People of ancient cultures viewed the sky as the inaccessible home of the gods. They observed the daily motion of the stars, and grouped them into patterns and images. They assigned stories to the stars, relating to themselves and their gods. They believed that human events and cycles were part of larger cosmic events and cycles. The night sky was part of the cycle. The steady progression of star patterns across the sky was related to the ebb and flow of the seasons, the cyclical migration of herds and hibernation of bears, the correct times to plant or harvest crops. Everywhere on Earth people watched and recorded this orderly and majestic celestial procession with writings and paintings, rock art, and rock and stone monuments or alignments. When the Great Pyramid in Egypt was constructed around 2650 BC, two shafts were built into it at an angle, running from the outside into the interior of the pyramid. The shafts coincide with the North-South passage of two stars important to the Egyptians: Thuban, the star closest to the North Pole at that time, and one of the stars of Orion’s belt. Orion was The Ishango Bone, thought to be a 20,000 year old associated with Osiris, one of the Egyptian gods of the lunar calendar underworld. The Bighorn Medicine Wheel in Wyoming, built by Plains Indians, consists of rocks in the shape of a large circle, with lines radiating from a central hub like the spokes of a bicycle wheel.
  • Plotting Variable Stars on the H-R Diagram Activity

    Plotting Variable Stars on the H-R Diagram Activity

    Pulsating Variable Stars and the Hertzsprung-Russell Diagram The Hertzsprung-Russell (H-R) Diagram: The H-R diagram is an important astronomical tool for understanding how stars evolve over time. Stellar evolution can not be studied by observing individual stars as most changes occur over millions and billions of years. Astrophysicists observe numerous stars at various stages in their evolutionary history to determine their changing properties and probable evolutionary tracks across the H-R diagram. The H-R diagram is a scatter graph of stars. When the absolute magnitude (MV) – intrinsic brightness – of stars is plotted against their surface temperature (stellar classification) the stars are not randomly distributed on the graph but are mostly restricted to a few well-defined regions. The stars within the same regions share a common set of characteristics. As the physical characteristics of a star change over its evolutionary history, its position on the H-R diagram The H-R Diagram changes also – so the H-R diagram can also be thought of as a graphical plot of stellar evolution. From the location of a star on the diagram, its luminosity, spectral type, color, temperature, mass, age, chemical composition and evolutionary history are known. Most stars are classified by surface temperature (spectral type) from hottest to coolest as follows: O B A F G K M. These categories are further subdivided into subclasses from hottest (0) to coolest (9). The hottest B stars are B0 and the coolest are B9, followed by spectral type A0. Each major spectral classification is characterized by its own unique spectra.
  • Dhruva the Ancient Indian Pole Star: Fixity, Rotation and Movement

    Dhruva the Ancient Indian Pole Star: Fixity, Rotation and Movement

    Indian Journal of History of Science, 46.1 (2011) 23-39 DHRUVA THE ANCIENT INDIAN POLE STAR: FIXITY, ROTATION AND MOVEMENT R N IYENGAR* (Received 1 February 2010; revised 24 January 2011) Ancient historical layers of Hindu astronomy are explored in this paper with the help of the Purân.as and the Vedic texts. It is found that Dhruva as described in the Brahmân.d.a and the Vis.n.u purân.a was a star located at the tail of a celestial animal figure known as the Úiúumâra or the Dolphin. This constellation, which can be easily recognized as the modern Draco, is described vividly and accurately in the ancient texts. The body parts of the animal figure are made of fourteen stars, the last four of which including Dhruva on the tail are said to never set. The Taittirîya Âran.yaka text of the Kr.s.n.a-yajurveda school which is more ancient than the above Purân.as describes this constellation by the same name and lists fourteen stars the last among them being named Abhaya, equated with Dhruva, at the tail end of the figure. The accented Vedic text Ekâgni-kân.d.a of the same school recommends observation of Dhruva the fixed Pole Star during marriages. The above Vedic texts are more ancient than the Gr.hya-sûtra literature which was the basis for indologists to deny the existence of a fixed North Star during the Vedic period. However the various Purân.ic and Vedic textual evidence studied here for the first time, leads to the conclusion that in India for the Yajurvedic people Thuban (α-Draconis) was Dhruva the Pole Star c 2800 BC.
  • Pole Star Used Finding Directions

    Pole Star Used Finding Directions

    Pole Star Used Finding Directions cold-shouldersHazel is tuppenny: some she Deuteronomy antiquate issuably docilely, and however question prudential her fumblers. Pace Noncontroversialprologising somnolently Pattie beveror or glisteringly,slumbers. Isidorian he retroceded Jakob infiltrateso latest. discriminately while Harry always stylising his pronotum entrusts When no typewriters in direction or pole star chart now show a man stopping to find directions for other stars called for fun or ursa minor inaccuracies due south. You find directions from hurting themselves using stars is used stars called the. Thus become less accurate. Amazon marketplace for finding east will find star is used celestial pole star, use the uses true? Look through that uses cookies that are setup and constellations made from true north pole star is a compass, but not always move asap, many sections of. Hi all stars and rotate about its n pole star used finding directions? After days of a line will often the easiest if you are unique sound. How stars using stars that direction from us today to use the pole descends toward the constellation ursa major constellations in lyra, used for free thesaurus. North pole using stars are used by finding direction is a bar magnets are you find. Make sure you find star or pole stars than true north poles and use a shadow will be changed its axis is. Html does this star indicates the stars! Now it if you find. This article on this is the constellations from charged by ancient middle of? The eighth largest declination is mobile, they could be made from the stick is not have both over.
  • Educator's Guide: Orion

    Educator's Guide: Orion

    Legends of the Night Sky Orion Educator’s Guide Grades K - 8 Written By: Dr. Phil Wymer, Ph.D. & Art Klinger Legends of the Night Sky: Orion Educator’s Guide Table of Contents Introduction………………………………………………………………....3 Constellations; General Overview……………………………………..4 Orion…………………………………………………………………………..22 Scorpius……………………………………………………………………….36 Canis Major…………………………………………………………………..45 Canis Minor…………………………………………………………………..52 Lesson Plans………………………………………………………………….56 Coloring Book…………………………………………………………………….….57 Hand Angles……………………………………………………………………….…64 Constellation Research..…………………………………………………….……71 When and Where to View Orion…………………………………….……..…77 Angles For Locating Orion..…………………………………………...……….78 Overhead Projector Punch Out of Orion……………………………………82 Where on Earth is: Thrace, Lemnos, and Crete?.............................83 Appendix………………………………………………………………………86 Copyright©2003, Audio Visual Imagineering, Inc. 2 Legends of the Night Sky: Orion Educator’s Guide Introduction It is our belief that “Legends of the Night sky: Orion” is the best multi-grade (K – 8), multi-disciplinary education package on the market today. It consists of a humorous 24-minute show and educator’s package. The Orion Educator’s Guide is designed for Planetarians, Teachers, and parents. The information is researched, organized, and laid out so that the educator need not spend hours coming up with lesson plans or labs. This has already been accomplished by certified educators. The guide is written to alleviate the fear of space and the night sky (that many elementary and middle school teachers have) when it comes to that section of the science lesson plan. It is an excellent tool that allows the parents to be a part of the learning experience. The guide is devised in such a way that there are plenty of visuals to assist the educator and student in finding the Winter constellations.
  • Full-Text (PDF)

    Full-Text (PDF)

    Vol.9(6), pp. 71-78, November 2018 DOI: 10.5897/IJEL2017.1067 Article Number: 63A2A8159324 ISSN: 2141-2626 Copyright ©2018 Author(s) retain the copyright of this article International Journal of English and Literature http://www.academicjournals.org/IJEL Full Length Research Paper Lyrical life: The prevailing mysticism of the evolution and inevitable putrefaction of the great human race Faisal Ahmed Department of English, World University of Bangladesh, Panthapath Campus, House-16, Road-7, Dhanmondi, Dhaka- 1205, Bangladesh. Received 8 May 2017; Accepted 26 October 2018 “Souls come to light after a fierce fight / among lovely „xx or xy‟ pairs at day or night” This hypothetical review is regarding the poem “Lyrical Life” which is a fourteen-line poem in a sonnet structure written by the author of this article. This article is intended to share the author‟s philosophy of life with that of other scholars and philosophers including pre-Socratic ones around the globe from ancient time to postmodern era. Human life-cycle is always a mystery and up-in-the-air issue to the people of antediluvian age, as well as to that of postmodern era, in fact, till today. The super-mystery is the origin or birth of human beings through sexual intercourse and their various stages of life—innocent infancy, playful childhood, obstreperous adolescence, extreme juvenescence, senescence, and the ultimate consequence of bereavement or quietus. The spectrum of life, and the uncertain circumstances that human beings undergo to sustain and survive is beyond their imagination. The golden segment of life is youth whereas the truest melancholy part of it is decease, demise or death and putrefaction.
  • Modern-Baby-Names.Pdf

    Modern-Baby-Names.Pdf

    All about the best things on Hindu Names. BABY NAMES 2016 INDIAN HINDU BABY NAMES Share on Teweet on FACEBOOK TWITTER www.indianhindubaby.com Indian Hindu Baby Names 2016 www.indianhindubaby.com Table of Contents Baby boy names starting with A ............................................................................................................................... 4 Baby boy names starting with B ............................................................................................................................. 10 Baby boy names starting with C ............................................................................................................................. 12 Baby boy names starting with D ............................................................................................................................. 14 Baby boy names starting with E ............................................................................................................................. 18 Baby boy names starting with F .............................................................................................................................. 19 Baby boy names starting with G ............................................................................................................................. 19 Baby boy names starting with H ............................................................................................................................. 22 Baby boy names starting with I ..............................................................................................................................
  • History of Space-Based Infrared Astronomy and the Air Force Infrared Celestial Backgrounds Program

    History of Space-Based Infrared Astronomy and the Air Force Infrared Celestial Backgrounds Program

    AFRL-RV-HA-TR-2008-1039 History of Space-Based Infrared Astronomy and the Air Force Infrared Celestial Backgrounds Program S. D. Price 18 April 2008 Approved for Public Release: Distribution Unlimited AIR FORCE RESEARCH LABORATORY Space Vehicles Directorate 29 Randolph Rd. Hanscom AFB, MA 01731-3010 AFRL-RV-HA-TR-2008-1039 This Technical Report has been reviewed and is approved for publication. / signed / ____________________________ Robert A. Morris, Chief Battlespace Environment Division / signed / / signed / _________________ _______________________________ Stephan D. Price Paul Tracy, Acting Chief Author Battlespace Surveillance Innovation Center This report has been reviewed by the ESC Public Affairs Office (PA) and is releasable to the National Technical Information Service. Qualified requestors may obtain additional copies from the Defense Technical Information Center (DTIC). All others should apply to the National Technical Information Service (NTIS). If your address has changed, if you wish to be removed from the mailing list, of if the address is no longer employed by your organization, please notify AFRL/VSIM, 29 Randolph Rd., Hanscom AFB, MA 01731-3010. This will assist us in maintaining a current mailing list. Do not return copies of this report unless contractual obligations or notices on a specific document require that it be returned. Form Approved REPORT DOCUMENTATION PAGE OMB No. 0704-0188 The public reporting burden for this collection of information is estimated to average 1 hour per response, including the time for reviewing instructions, searching existing data sources, gathering and maintaining the data needed, and completing and reviewing the collection of information. Send comments regarding this burden estimate or any other aspect of this collection of information, including suggestions for reducing the burden, to Department of Defense, Washington Headquarters Services, Directorate for Information Operations and Reports (0704-0188), 1215 Jefferson Davis Highway, Suite 1204, Arlington, VA 22202-4302.
  • The Hertzsprung-Russell Diagram Help Sheet

    The Hertzsprung-Russell Diagram Help Sheet

    School of Physics and Astronomy Edgbaston Birmingham B15 2TT The Hertzsprung-Russell Diagram Help Sheet Setting up the Telescope What is the wavelength range of an optical telescope? Approx. 400 - 700 nm Locating the Star Cluster Observing the sky from the Northern hemisphere, which star remains fixed in the sky whilst the other stars rotate around it? In which direction do they rotate? North Star/Pole Star/Polaris Stars rotate anticlockwise around Polaris Observing the Star Cluster - Stellar Observation What is the difference between the apparent magnitude and the absolute magnitude of a star? The apparent magnitude is how bright the star appears from Earth. The absolute magnitude is how bright the star would appear if it was 10pc away from Earth. Part 1 - Distance to the Star Cluster What is the distance to the star cluster in lightyears? 136 pc = 444 lightyears Conversion: 1 pc = 3.26 lightyears Why might the distance to the cluster you have calculated differ from the literature value? Uncertainty in fit of ZAMS (due to outlying stars, for example), hence uncertainty in distance modulus and hence distance. Part 2 - Age of the Star Cluster Why might there be an uncertainty in the age of the cluster determined by this method? Uncertainty in fit of isochrone; with 2 or 3 parameters to fit it can be difficult to reproduce the correct shape. Also problem with outlying stars, as explained in the manual. How does the age you have calculated compare to the age of the universe? Age of universe ~ 13.8 GYr Part 3 - Comparison of Star Clusters Consider the shape of the CMD for the Hyades.
  • Importance of Epoch of Kali Yuga

    Importance of Epoch of Kali Yuga

    1 of 5 c The Importance of Epoch of Kaliyuga In the ancient texts of our Nation, time is measured both in Micro and Macroscopic units. Puranic Texts like Vishnu Puranam (1:3:8 to 10) and Sreemad Bhagavatam (3:11:33) describe Macro Time. Varivasya Rahasyam (vv.12cd, 13 & 16 cd) describes Micro Time. In the same way, Astronomical texts like Surya Siddhanta 1:11 to 27, Maha Aryabhatta Siddhanta 1:15 to 20, Brahma Sphuta Siddhanta 1:4 to 14, Vatesvara Siddhanta 1:7 to 10 and Siddhanta Siromani 1: 5 to 27 mention the Time Division in Micro as well as Macroscopic units. These Puranic and Astronomical texts describe that the life time of Brahma is 432,00,00,000 x 2 x 360 x 100 years, i.e. 3,11,04,000,00,00,000 human years. The smallest unit of time mentioned in these ancient texts is Truti i.e. 1/1,12,500 second. Life time of Brahma has 2 x 360 x 100 Kalpa. One Kalpa has 432 Crore human years and of 14 Manvantra of 30,84,48,000 human years, including Sandhi period. One Manvantra has 71 Mahayuga and their Sandhi period. Sandhi Period is equal to 17,28,000 human years (Years of Kruta or Satya yuga). One Mahayuga is of 43,20,000 human years, i.e.17,28,000 years of Kruta + 12,96,000 years of Treta + 8,64,000 years of Dvapara + 4,32,000 human years of Kali yuga. Here, 360 human years are equal to one Divya year which is again equal to 12 Pitru years.