NATS1740 HW 6
Make sure to type full answers to all parts of this question in YOUR OWN
WORDS. Copying from online or textbook sources will result in zero points.
Each part should have a minimum of 3 sentences in the answer. Students need
to show thoughts on these questions NOT just the answer. This homework
provides a nice recap to our last topics covered in this class. Make sure to type
your answers carefully. Students must type full answers to all parts of this
question in THEIR OWN WORDS. Copying from online or textbook sources
will result in zero points.
[20pts ] Question1: [LA: Milky Way1]
Part A: Our galaxy the Milky Way has many interesting features and structures.
Describe the halo, our sun’s position, where you would expect to find a
supermassive black hole and where you would expect to find the bulge using
the figure below. As you list each area tell at least one piece of information
about that region (i.e what type of stars/gas/dust live there?).
Part B: We think that our galaxy was formed from a cloud of gas and dust in the
early universe, why do we see the ‘flat’ shape we have now? What law of nature
explains why the galaxy began to rotate rapidly and flatten out as it shrunk in
size? Describe at least one other astronomical phenomena that uses this law.
[20pts ] Question2: [LA: Black Orbits]
Part A: In the center of our own Milky Way galaxy is a black hole no one has
ever seen. We can’t see it but we can see the orbit of stars going around the
black hole. When an orbit is viewed from different angles it can appear as a
circle or an ellipse on the sky. Shown below are 2 stars, star A and star B. When
viewed straight down you see the true foci (filled dot) and three alternate angles
of viewing for each star are shown with the apparent foci (open dots). Using the
apparent foci and the true foci describe the apparent eccentricity and semi-major
axis of both star A and star B (Can they increase or decrease?).
Make sure to type full answers to all parts of this question in YOUR OWN
WORDS. Copying from online or textbook sources will result in zero points.
Each part should have a minimum of 3 sentences in the answer. Students need
to show thoughts on these questions NOT just the answer. This homework
provides a nice recap to our last topics covered in this class. Make sure to type
your answers carefully. Students must type full answers to all parts of this
question in THEIR OWN WORDS. Copying from online or textbook sources
will result in zero points.
[20pts ] Question1: [LA: Milky Way1]
Part A: Our galaxy the Milky Way has many interesting features and structures.
Describe the halo, our sun’s position, where you would expect to find a
supermassive black hole and where you would expect to find the bulge using
the figure below. As you list each area tell at least one piece of information
about that region (i.e what type of stars/gas/dust live there?).
Part B: We think that our galaxy was formed from a cloud of gas and dust in the
early universe, why do we see the ‘flat’ shape we have now? What law of nature
explains why the galaxy began to rotate rapidly and flatten out as it shrunk in
size? Describe at least one other astronomical phenomena that uses this law.
[20pts ] Question2: [LA: Black Orbits]
Part A: In the center of our own Milky Way galaxy is a black hole no one has
ever seen. We can’t see it but we can see the orbit of stars going around the
black hole. When an orbit is viewed from different angles it can appear as a
circle or an ellipse on the sky. Shown below are 2 stars, star A and star B. When
viewed straight down you see the true foci (filled dot) and three alternate angles
of viewing for each star are shown with the apparent foci (open dots). Using the
apparent foci and the true foci describe the apparent eccentricity and semi-major
axis of both star A and star B (Can they increase or decrease?).
