PHY 217 - Test 2
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1 Multiple choice
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2 Long Questions
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1. A star’s apparent magnitude is a logarithmic measure of its flux. With the naked eye, about 3000 stars are visible from a
typically good viewing location on Earth. Remember: magnitude 1 stars are the brightest, magnitude 6 stars are the faintest
we see with the naked eye.
Suppose that the 3000 stars visible to the naked are are uniformly distributed among the 6 magnitude bins. In other words,
there are 500 magnitude 1 stars, 500 magnitude 2 stars, 500 magnitude 3 stars, 500 magnitude 4 stars, 500 magnitude 5
stars, 500 magnitude 6 stars.
Now suppose that all the stars are moved further away from us. More specifically, suppose that every star is made to be 100
times more distant. How many stars will there be in each magnitude bin? What is the total number of stars we’ll see with
the naked eye? [4]
2. The Tully-Fisher Relation (TFR) is an empirical relation linking a spiral galaxy’s absolute magnitude (M ) to its maximum
rotation speed (W ). One form of the TFR is
M = −7.48(log10 W − 2.50) − 19.55. (1)
Suppose you measure a galaxy’s maximum rotation speed to be 250 km/s. How would you make this measurement?
Calculate the distance to this galaxy. Provide your answer in units of Mpc.
Assuming we live in a Universe with a local Hubble Constant of H0 = 74 km/s/Mpc, what would be the speed with which
the galaxy is moving away from us? [6]
3. Have you watched the movie Interstellar? It’s a good one! It’s the story of a group of people who travel to a black hole in
order to save humanity.
Suppose that humans one day become capable of interstellar travel. In fact, let’s suppose we’re able to completely break the
laws of physics by travelling 200 times faster than the speed of light.
There’s one black hole (BH) that we know definitely does exist - the supermassive BH at the centre of our Galaxy. We’ve
imaged the shadow of this BH, and we’ve also quantified its gravitational influences on nearby stars. Let’s suppose we want
to travel to this BH. How many years will it take us to get there?
Describe three properties of the nearby space you’re traveling through that will gradually change as you move from Earth to
the centre of our Galaxy. HINT: think about the types of stars you’ll see, the type of interstellar material you’ll pass through,
the structures of our Galaxy you’ll see, the ages of the stars you’ll pass by. [5]
4. Many skeptics of the Apollo Moon landings ask the question: If the Moon landings were real, why not point the Hubble
Space Telescope (HST) at the landing sites and take pictures of the landers?
Suppose we try to do this with the HST. It has a primary dish of diameter 2.4 m. Suppose also that we’re observing at a
wavelength of 700 nm.
The base of the lunar lander is about 4 m wide, and the average distance between the HST and the Moon is about 380 000
km.
Will you be able to see an image of the lunar lander in an image taken by the HST? Provide working that supports your
answer. [5]
1
5. Assuming stars to behave as black bodies, use the Stefan-Boltzmann law to show that the luminosity of a star is related to
its surface temperature and size in the following way:
L = 4πR2 σT 4 , (2)
where σ = 5.67 × 10−8 W m−2 K−4 is the Stefan-Boltzmann constant. Then, use this expression, together with the
knowledge that the Sun has a surface temperate of 5700 K and radius 695 500 km to calculate the luminosity of the Sun in
units of Watts. [4]
2
Some useful numbers, constants, and equations
c = 3.00 × 108 m s−1
G = 6.674 × 10−11 m3 kg−1 s−2
h = 6.625 × 10−34 J s
σ = 5.67 × 10−8 W m−2 K−4
H0 = 72 km s−1 Mpc−1
1Å = 10−10 m
1 AU = 1.5 × 1011 m
1 ly = 9.46 × 1015 m
1 pc = 3.086 × 1016 m
1 LSun = 3.9 × 1026 W
1 RSun = 6.95 × 108 m
1 MSun = 1.99 × 1030 kg
1 MSun = 1.99 × 1030 kg
1 MEarth = 5.97 × 1024 kg
1 REarth = 6378 km
M = −2.43 log10 (P − 1) − 4.05
P 2 = a3
P 2 = (M1 + M2 )a3
4π 2 a3
P 2 = G(m 1 +m2 )
E = hν = hc/λ
λmax = 3 × 106 /T
L = 4πR2 σTeff 4
2
En [eV] = −13.6/n
1 1
∆E [eV] = −13.6 n21
− n22
d = 1/p
v r = H0 D
z = (λobs − λrest )/λrest
z = vr /c (non-relativistic)
v (z+1)2 −1
c = (z+1)2 +1 (relativistic)
θdiff = 1.22λ/D
L
F = 4πR 2
1 radian = 206265 arcsec
m1 − m2 = −2.5 log10 (F1 /F2 )
M1 − M2 = −2.5 log10 (L1 /L2 )
m − M = 5 log10 (D) − 5
RS = 2GM/c2