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Stars Galaxies
Stars Galaxies
Stars Galaxies
Created by the
Lunar and Planetary Institute
For Educational Use Only
LPI is not responsible for the ways
in which this powerpoint may be used or altered.
Image at http://hubblesite.org/newscenter/archive/releases/galaxy/spiral/2009/07/image/g/results/50/
Welcome!
Stars
Gas and dust (Nebulae)
Star clusters
Galaxies
Different
types of
stars
Image from
http://hubblesite.org/newscenter/archive/releases/star%20cluster/globular/2003/21/image/a/results/50/
Types of Stars
Big
Small
Red
Blue
Yellow
In groups
Alone
More later
What is a “star cluster”?
Image at
http://hubblesite.org/newscenter/archive/releases/star%20cluster/globular/2007/18/image/a/format/web/results/50/
Open Clusters
Image at http://hubblesite.org/newscenter/archive/releases/star%20cluster/open/2004/20/image/a/results/50/
More open star clusters
Image at
http://hubblesite.org/newscenter/archive/releases/star%20cluster/globular/1999/26/image/a/results/50/
What is a “nebula”?
A cloud in space
Made of gas and dust
Can have stars inside
Most of the ones we see are inside our Milky
Way Galaxy
Different types
Emission Nebula
•The hot gas is emitting light
Supernova remnant
(smaller, less gas)
Image at http://hubblesite.org/newscenter/archive/releases/nebula/supernova-remnant/2005/37/results/50/
What is a “galaxy”?
Images at http://hubblesite.org/newscenter/archive/releases/galaxy/elliptical/2007/08/image/a/format/large_web/results/50/
and http://hubblesite.org/newscenter/archive/releases/galaxy/elliptical/1995/07/results/50/
Irregular Galaxies
Image at http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/bigphotos/1945371.html
Mapping the Milky Way
How do we know what our Galaxy
looks like?
We can see stars
star clusters
nebulae
Galaxies
How many degrees did the plate move, relative to the background?
Sine of the parallax (angle) x Earth’s distance to the Sun = Distance to the star
The angles involved for strellar observations are very small and difficult to
measure. Proxima Centauri, has a parallax of 0.77 arcsec. This angle is
approximately the angle subtended by an object about 2 centimeters in diameter
located about 5.3 kilometers away.
Measuring Distances
What is a Light Year?
A light year is the distance light travels in a year. Light moves at a
velocity of about 300,000 kilometers (km) each second; how far
would it move in a year?
About 10 trillion km (or about 6 trillion miles).
Electromagnetic spectrum
http://coolcosmos.ipac.caltech.edu/cosmic_classroom/ir_tutorial/what_is_ir.html
.
Let’s Observe A Spectrum
Continuous
Emission or Bright Line (from ionized gas, like
a nebula or a neon sign)
Absorption or dark line (from stars)
Illustration at http://imagine.gsfc.nasa.gov/docs/science/how_l1/spectra.html
Radiation
All stars emit radiation
Radio, infrared, visible, ultraviolet, x-ray and even some gamma
rays
Most sunlight is yellow-green visible light or close to it
Images from
http://www.nasa.gov/centers/goddard/news/topstory/2007/spectrum_plants.html and
http://sunearthday.gsfc.nasa.gov/2009/TTT/65_surfacetemp.php
Young
stars
form in
nebulae
from Small
Magellanic
Cloud
Image at
http://hubblesite.org/newscenter/archive/releases/2007/04/image/a/results/50/
Star-forming region in the Large Magellanic Cloud:
http://hubblesite.org/newscenter/archive/releases/2008/31/image/a/results/50/
Orion image at http://hubblesite.org/newscenter/archive/releases/2006/01/image/a/results/50/
Interstellar “eggs”
Movie at http://www.stsci.edu/EPA/PR/95/44/M16.mpg
Our Sun is a Regular/ Small Star
Image at http://www.gsfc.nasa.gov/topstory/20011210insidesun.html
In a few Billion years… Red
Giant
Image at http://hubblesite.org/newscenter/archive/releases/1997/26/image/a/
Our Sun’s Habitable Zone
Image at http://hubblesite.org/newscenter/archive/releases/nebula/planetary/1998/39/results/50/
Image at
http://hubblesite.org/newscenter/archive/releases/nebula/planetary/2000/28/image/a/format/web_print/results/50/
Image at http://hubblesite.org/newscenter/archive/releases/nebula/planetary/2004/27/image/a/format/large_web/results/50/
Massive
Stars are
different
On the “Main
Sequence” but
not for long
Image from
http://hubblesite.org/newscenter/archive/releases/nebula/emission/1997/33/results/50/
Betelgeuse—Red Supergiant
Images at
http://hubblesite.org/newscenter/archive/releases/star/supernova/2004/09/results/50/
http://hubblesite.org/newscenter/archive/releases/nebula/supernova-remnant/2005/37/results/50/
http://chandra.harvard.edu/photo/2009/casa/
Neutron Star or Pulsar
Image at http://hubblesite.org/newscenter/archive/releases/nebula/supernova-remnant/2002/24/results/50/
Black Hole
Image at http://hubblesite.org/newscenter/archive/releases/2002/30/image/a/results/50/
Classifying Galaxies
Galaxies
Image at http://hubblesite.org/newscenter/archive/releases/galaxy/spiral/2005/01/results/50/
Spiral galaxy--Andromeda
Image at http://hubblesite.org/newscenter/archive/releases/galaxy/spiral/2006/24/image/a/results/50/
Image at http://hubblesite.org/newscenter/archive/releases/galaxy/spiral/2007/41/results/50/
Elliptical galaxies
Images at http://hubblesite.org/newscenter/archive/releases/galaxy/elliptical/2007/08/image/a/format/large_web/results/50/
and http://hubblesite.org/newscenter/archive/releases/galaxy/elliptical/1995/07/results/50/
Lenticular
Image at http://hubblesite.org/newscenter/archive/releases/galaxy/elliptical/2002/07/results/50/
Irregular Galaxies
Information at http://hubblesite.org/newscenter/archive/releases/galaxy/interacting/1997/34/results/50/
The occasional results of two
galaxies colliding: ringed
galaxies
Image at
http://hubblesite.org/newscenter/archive/releases/galaxy/cluster/1999/31/results/50/
Supermassive black holes
Image at http://hubblesite.org/newscenter/archive/releases/galaxy/spiral/2000/37/results/50/
at the center of a large galaxy
Image at http://hubblesite.org/newscenter/archive/releases/galaxy/cluster/2008/24/image/a/results/20/
Superclusters!
Image at http://www.galex.caltech.edu/media/glx2007-05f_img01.html
Origin of the Universe
Big Bang
Dominant scientific theory about the
origin of the universe
Occurred ~13.7 billion years ago
Instantaneous filling of
space with all matter
History of the
Universe
•10-43 seconds - gravity separates from other forces
•10-35 to 10-32 seconds - fundamental particles - quarks and electrons
•10-6 seconds - quarks combine into protons and neutrons
•1 second - electromagnetic and weak nuclear forces separate
•3 minutes - protons and neutrons combine into atomic nuclei
Image at http://www.galex.caltech.edu/media/glx2004-01r_img02.html
Big Bang Theory
How do we know?
Spreading (Red Shift) -
know distances, rates of
retreat, relative positions
Pervasive background
radiation of 2.7°C above
absolute zero - afterglow
of the Big Bang
http://timeline.aps.org/APS/resources/85_06a.jpg
Feedback, Questions