Problem Set 1

HCAstro Winter Training 2021

Note: some sub-questions are indicated by asterisks; these are questions which need
more mathematics than usual. If you’re not too interested in that, or haven’t learnt a lot
of math before, then it’s ok if you want to skip (or not, up to you!)

1. Explain the meaning of the term nuclear fusion. In terms of the law of conservation
of energy, and the mass–energy equivalence principle, explain why it releases energy
that can be used to power stars.

2. Consider a cloud of dust and gas (a nebula) in deep space.

a) What is Jeans instability?
b) By considering the balance between the gravitational self-attraction of the neb-
ula and its thermal pressure, explain what physical conditions (e.g. in terms of
temperature, density, etc.) are favourable for star formation.
c) Hence, explain why stellar nurseries are almost always molecular clouds.

3. The simplest way to determine distances to a distant star is a technique known as

parallax. It is so simple that astronomers often refer to this method as “direct measure-
ment”, even though it is not direct in the ordinary sense.
a) Explain the principle behind the parallax method, and define parallax angle.
b) State the definition of the unit of distance, parsec (pc).
c) State a formula which can be used to calculate the distance of a star (in parsecs)
using its parallax angle (in arcseconds).
d) By considering the size of errors due to limitations in the accuracy of our mea-
surements, explain why the parallax method cannot be used for distances more
than approximately 1000pc away from Earth.
*e) Derive the formula in part (c) using the small angle approximation tan θ ≈ θ.
*f) Support your explanation in part (d) with mathematics: for an uncertainty of ∆θ
in the measurement for the parallax angle θ, calculate the corresponding uncer-
tainty ∆d in distance, and hence explain why the errors become too substantial
when d > 1000pc.

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4. All stars are approximately blackbodies, so studying blackbody radiation is often
useful when modelling stars.
a) Explain what is meant by a blackbody.
b) State Planck’s law for blackbody radiation.
c) According to Planck’s law, sketch the spectral irridiance of a blackbody against
wavelength of radiation for different temperatures.
d) State Wien’s displacement law. On the same graph as in part (b), indicate the
peak emission wavelength as indicated by Wien’s law.
e) State the Stefan–Boltzmann law. On the same graph as in parts (b) and (c), indi-
cate the area described by the Stefan–Boltzmann law.
f) Explain how Wien’s law and the Stefan–Boltzmann law can be used to determine,
from direct measurements of radiation emitted by a star, its radius and surface
temperature. Assume that the star’s absolute luminosity is known, and there is no
redshift.

5. In the 1920s, new observations indicated that distant galaxies were receding from
Earth at a rate proportional to their distance from Earth. State the name for this phe-
nomenon, and explain its cosmological significance.