Class Information for PHYS/ASTR 1050 can be found at:

• www.physics.utah.edu
• Click on courses
• Click on The Solar System (George Cassiday…that’s me)
• Everything about the class HW, Exams, Syllabus, etc can
be found by following the appropriate links.
 The Solar
System
CHAPTER 1
Astronomy and the Universe
The Sun and Planets to Scale
Solar Luminosity = 4 x 1023 KW
The Sun’s Energy Release = 100 Billion Hydrogen
Bombs per second!
The Orion Nebula
 The Crab Nebula

Crab
Pulsar
 Milky Way Galaxy

You are here

• Actually, this is our sister galaxy, Andromeda,

about 2 MLY away!
• Our galaxy contains about 200 billion stars —
Andromeda is a little smaller.
Angular Measure
 Angular Measure
• 1 arc minute (arcmin) = 1/60 degree
• 1 arc second (arcsec) = 1/60 arcmin
For small angles ≤ 200 α = D/d (in radians…not degrees)
 Circumference of Circle: C = 2πR
• C/R = 2π (radians) This is the angle of a full circle.
• 2π radians is equivalent to 3600

α = L / R (in radians)
L
α
If L = C
R
then α = 2π radians
If L = R
then α = 1 radian

3600 = 2π radians
1 radian = 57.30
 Question
What is the angle in degrees subtended by a
line segment whose length is R along the
circumference of a circle whose radius is R?
1. 90
2. 180 R
3. 1/2
α
4. 1.00
5. 57.3 R

α = 1 rad α = R / R in radians
= 1 rad x (360 0 / 2π rad)
= 57.3 0
 Powers of 10

• 10-1 = 0.1 • 101 = 10

• 10-2 = 0.01 • 102 = 100
• etc. • etc.
Light Years and Parsecs
Distance Light Travels
in 1 Year …
1 LY = c T
c = 3 x 108 m/s
T = 1 Yr = 3.15 x 107 s

1 LY = (3 x 108 m/s) x (3.15 x 107 s)

= 9.5 x 1015 m
 Key Ideas
 Astronomy, Science, and the Nature of the
Universe: The universe is comprehensible. The
scientific method is a procedure for formulating
hypotheses about the universe. These are tested by
observation or experimentation in order to build
consistent models or theories that accurately
describe phenomena in nature.
 Observations of the heavens have helped scientists
discover some of the fundamental laws of physics.
 The Solar System: Exploration of the planets
provides information about the origin and evolution
of the solar system, as well as about the history and
resources of Earth.
 Stars and Nebulae: Studying the stars and nebulae
helps us learn about the origin and history of the
Sun and the solar system.
 Key Ideas
 Galaxies: Observations of galaxies tell us about the
origin and history of the universe.
 Angular Measure: Astronomers use angles to
denote the positions and sizes of objects in the sky.
The size of an angle is measured in degrees,
arcminutes, and arcseconds.
 Powers-of-Ten Notation is a convenient shorthand
system for writing numbers. It allows very large and
very small numbers to be expressed in a compact
form.
 Units of Distance: Astronomers use a variety of
distance units. These include the astronomical unit
(the average distance from Earth to the Sun), the
light-year (the distance that light travels in one
year), and the parsec.