IAAC Qualification Round 2023

Problem A: The Classification of Galaxies

Galaxy Classes

A1: Irregular (Irr)

A2: Elliptical (E)
A3: Spiral (SA)
A4: Barred Spiral (SB)

Galaxy Classes and Names

B1: Spiral (SA) B2: Irregular (Irr)

C1: NGC 300 C2: NGC 2337

B3: Barred Spiral (SB) B4: Elliptical (E)

C3: NGC 1365 C4: Messier 110
Problem B: The Speed of Light
We are given the following data:

𝑐 = 300 000 𝑘𝑚/𝑠 Speed of Light

𝑑1 = 223 𝑚𝑖𝑙𝑙𝑖𝑜𝑛 𝑘𝑚 Distance from the Sun to Mars

𝑑2 = 777 𝑚𝑖𝑙𝑙𝑖𝑜𝑛 𝑘𝑚 Distance from the Sun to Jupiter

𝑑3 = 5 906 𝑚𝑖𝑙𝑙𝑖𝑜𝑛 𝑘𝑚 Distance from the Sun to Pluto

We need to determine the time it takes to light to reach these planets from the Sun’s surface.
It’s known that:
𝑑
𝑣=
𝑡
Using the known variables, we get:
𝑑
𝑐=
𝑡
𝑑
𝑡=
𝑐
Replacing d for each one of the distances we have, we get the following times:
𝑑1
𝑡1 = = 743.3 𝑠𝑒𝑐𝑜𝑛𝑑𝑠 = 12.4 𝑚𝑖𝑛𝑢𝑡𝑒𝑠 Mars
𝑐

𝑑2
𝑡2 = = 2590 𝑠𝑒𝑐𝑜𝑛𝑑𝑠 = 43.2 𝑚𝑖𝑛𝑢𝑡𝑒𝑠 Jupiter
𝑐

𝑑3
𝑡3 = = 19 686 𝑠𝑒𝑐𝑜𝑛𝑑𝑠 = 5.46 ℎ𝑜𝑢𝑟𝑠 Pluto
𝑐

Problem C: Elliptical Orbit

We have the following data:

𝑎 = 16.5 𝐴𝑈 Semi-major axis of the orbit

𝑏 = 8.3 𝐴𝑈 Semi-minor axis of the orbit

𝑀𝑠𝑢𝑛 = 1.9 ∗ 1030 𝑘𝑔 Mass of the sun

a) Calculate the eccentricity of P/2023 IAAC’s orbit around the Sun
The semi-major and semi-minor axis can be represented as follows:
It’s known that the eccentricity of an ellipse is:
𝑐
𝑒=
𝑎
Since we have the values of a and b, we can determine the value of c

𝑐 = √𝑎 2 − 𝑏 2

𝑐 = 14.26 𝐴𝑈
Using a and c, we calculate the eccentricity:
𝑐
𝑒=
𝑎
𝑒 = 0.86

b) Which of the points 𝑷𝟏 , 𝑷𝟐 , 𝑷𝟑 is at the aphelion and which one on the perihelion?
The aphelion is the point of the orbit where the comet is the farthest from the sun, so looking at the
given scheme we determine the aphelion is the point 𝑃2 . In contrast, the perihelion is the point of the
orbit where the comet is closer to the sun, and this is in the point 𝑃1 .

c) Determine the comet’s speed at the three points 𝑷𝟏 , 𝑷𝟐 , 𝑷𝟑

The speed at any point of the orbit can be calculated using the vis-viva equation.

2 1
𝑣(𝑥) = √𝐺(𝑚1 + 𝑚2 ) ( − )
𝑥 𝑎

Since the mass of the comet is negligible compared to the mass of the sun, the equation will be:

2 1
𝑣(𝑥) = √𝐺𝑀𝑠𝑢𝑛 ( − )
𝑥 𝑎

To determine the speed at each point, we need the value of 𝑥 in 𝑃1 , 𝑃2 , 𝑃3 . The values of x will be:
𝑥1 = 𝑎 − 𝑐 = 2.24 𝐴𝑈 x in 𝑃1
𝑥2 = 𝑎 + 𝑐 = 30.76 𝐴𝑈 x in 𝑃2

𝑥2 = 𝑎 = 16.5 𝐴𝑈 x in 𝑃3
To calculate the speed in 𝑃1 , 𝑃2 , 𝑃3 , we use the different values of x, obtaining the following results:

𝑣1 = 26.5 𝑘𝑚/𝑠 Speed in 𝑃1

𝑣2 = 1.9 𝑘𝑚/𝑠 Speed in 𝑃2

𝑣3 = 7.15 𝑘𝑚/𝑠 Speed in 𝑃3

Problem D: Distance between Stars

We are given the following data:

𝜃 = 5° Angular distance between the two stars

𝜋1 = 0.11 𝑎𝑟𝑐𝑠𝑒𝑐 Parallax of the first star

𝜋2 = 0.13 𝑎𝑟𝑐𝑠𝑒𝑐 Parallax of the second star

Using the parallax, we can find the distance to each star using the following formula:
1
𝑑=
𝜋
Replacing the values of 𝜋1 and 𝜋2 in this expression, we obtain these distances:
1
𝑑1 = = 9.1 𝑝𝑐
𝜋1

1
𝑑2 = = 7.8 𝑝𝑐
𝜋2

Since we know the angular distance between the stars, and their distances to Earth, we construct the
following scheme:

The distance between the stars will be x, and it can be calculated using the cosine theorem

𝑥 = √𝑑12 + 𝑑22 − 2(𝑑1 )(𝑑2 ) ∗ cos (𝜃)

Hence, we get that the distance between the stars is:

𝑥 = 1.5 𝑝𝑐

Problem E: Dark Energy

What does the term Dark Energy describe?
Dark Energy is an unknow type of energy present in the whole universe. It is said Dark Energy
generates some kind of pressure that makes the universe expand, as if it was an inverse gravitational
force. In the standard model of cosmology, Dark Energy apports almost 69% of the total mass-energy
of the universe.

What are evidences for the existence of Dark Energy?

The constant expansion of the universe could be a clue to prove the existence of Dark Energy since
this concept explains the recent observations of this accelerated expansion. The first evidence of the
accelerated expansion came from supernovas, showing that the universe does not expand at a constant
rate.

Name: María Isabel Olarte García

School: Universidad de Antioquia
Country: Colombia
Category: Youth