Log out Go to App
Go to App

Learning Materials

Features

Discover

Chapter 8: Problem 27

A 1999 news story about the discovery of three planets orbiting the star Upsilon Andromedae ("Ups And" in Figure 8-17) stated that "the newly discovered galaxy, with three large planets orbiting a star known as Upsilon Andromedae, is 44 light-years away from Earth." What is wrong with this statement?

Short Answer

Expert verified
The error in the statement lies in the terminology. It mentions a 'newly discovered galaxy' where it should have mentioned a 'newly discovered solar system'. A galaxy is a huge cluster of stars, gas, and dust, whereas a solar system, what the statement aims to describe, mainly constitutes of planets revolving around a star.

Step by step solution

01

Understand the given statement

In the given statement, it mentioned about a 'newly discovered galaxy' having three large planets orbiting a star called 'Upsilon Andromedae'. The star is said to be 44 light-years away from Earth.
02

Identify the wrong terminology

On breaking down the given statement, one can see that it talks about planets revolving around a star. Those are typical characteristics of a 'solar system' and not a 'galaxy'. Hence, the error in the statement lies in using the term 'galaxy' instead of 'solar system'.

Unlock Step-by-Step Solutions & Ace Your Exams!

  • Full Textbook Solutions

    Get detailed explanations and key concepts

  • Unlimited Al creation

    Al flashcards, explanations, exams and more...

  • Ads-free access

    To over 500 millions flashcards

  • Money-back guarantee

    We refund you if you fail your exam.

Start your free trial

Over 30 million students worldwide already upgrade their learning with Vaia!

One App. One Place for Learning.

All the tools & learning materials you need for study success - in one app.

Get started for free

Most popular questions from this chapter

How do radioactive elements make it possible to determine the age of the solar system? What are the oldest objects that have been found in the solar system?

Use the Stamy Night Enthusiast \({ }^{\mathrm{TM}}\) program to investigate stars that have planets orbiting them. First display the entire celestial sphere (select Guides > Atlas in the Favourites menu). Then use the Find pane to find and center each of the stars listed below. To do this, click the magnifying glass icon on the left side of the edit box at the top of the Find pane and select Star from the dropdown menu; then type the name of the star in the edit box and press the Enter or Return key on the keyboard. Click on the Info tab on the left-hand side of the Starry Night Enthusiast 'M window for full information about the star. For each star, record the luminosity of the star (a measure of the star's total light output). How far from Earth is each star? Which stars are more luminous than the Sun? Which are less luminous? How do you think these differences would have affected temperatures in the nebula in which each star's planets formed (see Figure 8-10)? (i) 47 Ursae Majoris; (ii) 51 Pegasi; (iii) 70 Virginis; (iv) Rho Coronae Borealis.

What is the radial velocity method used to detect planets orbiting other stars? Why is it difficult to use this method to detect planets like Earth?

What is a chondrule? How do we know they were not formed by the ambient heat of the solar nebula?

Use the Stamy Night Enthusiast \({ }^{\mathrm{TM}}\) program to examine stars that have planets. Select Stars > ExtraSolar Planets in the Favourites menu. In the star map that appears, each circled star has one or more planets. (You can zoom in and zoom out using the buttons at the right side of the toolbar. Click the Info tab at the left of the main window to open the Info pane and open the Other Data panel. Then click on a circled star to learn more about its properties. Note that the information given for each star includes the apparent magnitude, which is a measure of how bright each star appears as seen from Earth. Apparent magnitude uses a "backwards" scale: The greater the value of the apparent magnitude, the dimmer the star. Most of the brighter stars you can see with the naked eye from the Earth have apparent magnitudes between 0 and 1 , while the dimmest star you can see from a dark location has apparent magnitude 6. Are most of the circled stars visible to the naked eye? List at least two stars that are visible, and include their apparent magnitudes.
See all solutions

Recommended explanations on Physics Textbooks

Translational Dynamics

Read Explanation

Electromagnetism

Read Explanation

Nuclear Physics

Read Explanation

Torque and Rotational Motion

Read Explanation

Famous Physicists

Read Explanation

Electric Charge Field and Potential

Read Explanation
View all explanations

What do you think about this solution?

We value your feedback to improve our textbook solutions.

Study anywhere. Anytime. Across all devices.

Sign-up for free