chapter 28 stars and galaxies
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CHAPTER 28STARS AND GALAXIES
28.1 A CLOSER LOOK AT LIGHT
Light is a form of electromagnetic radiation, which is energy that travels in waves. Waves of energy travel at 300,000 km/sec (speed of
light Ex: radio waves and x-rays
Electromagnetic radiation waves are arranged into a continuum call the electromagnetic spectrum. Wide range of wavelengths Long wavelengths with low frequencies at one end, short
wavelengths with high frequencies at the other end Wavelength measured crest to crest/trough to trough Frequency the number of that crests of the same
wavelength that pass a point in one second.
Scientists study the visible light portion of the electromagnetic spectrum. Spectra of a stars allow for astronomers to learn
about the star’s elements and motion. Spectra studied using a spectroscope
Three types of visible spectra Continuous spectrum: unbroken band of colors,
emitting all colors of visible light
Emission spectrum: unevenly space of lines of different colors, emitting light of only some Wavelengths
Absorption spectrum: dark lines that cross a continuous spectrum.
Doppler Effect - change in the wavelength of sound due to motion between the object and the receiver.
Doppler effect applies to lights as well as sound. Shift of the emission spectra can indicate if the object
is moving towards or away from Earth Shift towards red end of spectrum, object moving
away Earth – Redshift Shift towards blue end of spectrum, object moving
towards Earth - Blueshift Doppler effect determined that the universe is
expanding
TELESCOPES Optical Telescopes – gather far more light than
an unaided eye and magnify imagers Reflecting
Uses one lens at back to gather and focus light Image reflected on to a small mirror and then the eye
piece Refracting
Uses two lenses Lens at the front gathers light Eyepiece magnifies image
Radio Telescopes = big satellite dishes Use to detect energy waves at frequencies lower
than visible light
Other Usually satellites in space
Gamma ray Background radiation X-ray Hubble (infrared)
28.2 Stars and Their Characteristics Observation of stars has been going on for over
5000 years The grouping of stars are called constellations Constellations
only appear together as viewed from Earth; from a different angle they do not look like the constellation
Constellations (continued) Constellations will change
shape over thousands of years due to the universe expanding
Move across the sky from east to west (though Earth rotates west to east)
North Star – Current is Polaris Sits directly over the North pole Does not move to the naked
eye Very powerful tool for
navigation Due to Precession, Polaris will
not always be the “North Star”
The Constellations that dominate the night sky change from month to month. This is the result of the Earth’s change in position as it orbits the Sun.
Distances to stars and other objects in space Astronomical Unit (AU) - the distance from Earth to the
Sun (150 million kilometers) Light year - the distance light travels in one year (9.5
trillion kilometers) It is a distance measurement Example - 4.2 light-years means that the light we see has been
traveling for 4.2 years before we can see it (4.2 X 9.5 trillion km) Parallax - change in an object’s direction due to a change
in the observer’s position Parsec short for “parallax second” equal to 3.258 light-
years.
Parallax
The further the object from the viewer, the less the parallax shift.
Stars No two stars have the same proportions of
elements Elements
Hydrogen ~69% Helium ~29% Heavier elements ~2% light that radiates is dependent on composition
and temperature, this differs in every star Star spectrum is its fingerprint
Mass, Size and Temperature Stars vary greatly in masses, size and temperature Cannot observe directly so we are estimating what
the mass might be Gravitational effect on bodies around the star help with
estimating its mass Star mass is expressed as multiples of the mass of our
Sun (which has a stellar mass of 1) Size varies more than mass
Smallest stars are smaller than Earth Largest have diameters more than 2000 times that of our
Sun Stars differ even more in density
Betelguese is about one ten-millionth of our Sun One star is so dense that one teaspoon would weight
more than a ton on Earth
Star size comparison
Temperature of stars vary Range of color emitted is dependent on the surface
temperature
Cool stars are red Ex. Betelguese with a surface temperature of 3000oC
Mid-temperatures are yellow Ex. The Sun with a surface temperature of 5500oC
Hot stars are blue Ex. Sirus
Harvard Spectral Classification Scheme - group stars by temperature and color
Luminosity = brightness of a star Dependent on size and temperature of the star If two stars are the same size the hotter star would
be more luminous Apparent magnitude - how bright a star
appears Does not factor in distance
Absolute magnitude - how bright the star would be if all stars were the same distance from Earth (10 parsec)
Variable stars -show a variation in brightness
Cepheid variables are yellow supergiant stars with a cycle of brightness ranging from 1- 50 days.
Most have a cycle of 5 days. Nonpulsating star change in brightness due to fact
that it is more than one star.
28.3 LIFE CYCLE OF STARS
Hertzsprung-Russell (H-R) diagram – shows luminosity, temperature, and stages in the life cycle of the stars
Main Sequence – 90% of stars run in a band from upper left to bottom right of diagram
Giants & Supergiants – more luminous, found above main sequence
White dwarfs – near the end of their lives, below main sequence, glowing stellar core
Hertzsprung-Russell Diagram
http://www.spacetelescope.org/videos/heic1017b/
Life cycle of a star like our Sun
A star begins its life in a cloud of gas ( mostly Hydrogen) and dust called a nebula nebula condenses, becomes denser, temp. increases
becomes a protostar fusion begins and star is “born” Hydrogen in core continues to fuse into helium
When hydrogen “runs out”, fusion occurs outside the core and the star expands (giant)
Gas layers are blown away and the carbon-oxygen core is left (a white dwarf)
Life cycle of a Massive Star
Begins like our sun Instead of a carbon-oxygen core forming, an
iron nuclei forms, and the star expands to 100x the size of our sun (supergiant)
Iron nuclei absorbs energy and collapses (supernova) Massive star remnants become a Neutron Star or
Black Hole
http://www.teachertube.com/viewVideo.php?video_id=73345 (about 9 minutes)
Galaxies and the Universe Universe –everything that exists, 10 billion-20
billion years old Galaxy – group of stars held together by gravity 3 types:
We live in the Milky Way Galaxy ( a spiral galaxy) Elliptical Galaxy- concentrated, spherical shape Irregular Galaxy – smaller, fainter, spread unevenly
3 types of galaxies
SPIRAL GALAXY (MILKY WAY)ELLIPTICAL GALAXY
IRREGULAR GALAXY
Origin of the Universe
• Big Bang Model – explains the history of the universe from a fraction of a second AFTER it came into being up to present time– Evidence supporting it = distance between galaxies is
increasing (universe is expanding)– Edwin Hubble found redshifts in the spectra of the galaxies– Cosmic background radiation found with radio telescopes
– http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HEheh1BH34Q
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