D.

1 Parallax questions

If the parallax angle is one arcsecond (1 “) the

distance to the star is called a parsec

d (parsecs) = 1/p (p in arcsecs)

Converting degrees to arcsecs (in radians)

• Multiply by 2π/360 to convert to radians

• Then multiply by 1/3600 to convert to

arcsecs

1 parsec = 3.26 ly

1. Proxima Centauri, our closest star, has a

parallax angle of 0.7687 arcsecs. Find the distance in parsecs to Proxima
Centauri.

2. Find the distance in parsecs and light years to Procyon, which has a parallax
angle of 0.285”.

Who am
3. The distance to Sirius is 8.6 ly. What is its parallax? (angle) I?

4. The distance to Gliese 876 is 15.3 ly. What is

its parallax?

5. Explain why stellar parallax can only be used

to measure the distance to stars up to about
300 ly using earth based telescopes.