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How do we define the day, month, year, and planetary time periods?
Length of a Day
! Sidereal day: Earth rotates once on its axis in 23 hrs, 56 min, and 4.07 sec.
Length of a Day
! Solar day: The Sun makes one circuit around the sky in 24 hours
Length of a Day
! Solar day is longer than a sidereal day by about 1/360 because Earth moves about 1 in orbit each day
Length of a Month
! Sidereal month: Moon orbits Earth in 27.3 days. ! Earth & Moon travel 30 around Sun during that time (30/360 = 1/12) ! Synodic month: A cycle of lunar phases; therefore takes about 29.5 days, 1/12 longer than a sidereal month
Length of a Year
! Sidereal year: Time for Earth to complete one orbit of Sun ! Tropical year: Time for Earth to complete one cycle of seasons ! Tropical year is about 20 minutes (1/26,000) shorter than a sidereal year because of Earths precession.
Planetary Periods
Planetary Periods
! Difference between a planets orbital (sidereal) and synodic period depends on how far planet moves in one Earth year
for outer planets
! Planetary periods can be measured with respect to stars (sidereal) or to apparent position of Sun (synodic).
1 yr Psyn #1 yr
Planetary Periods
! Difference between a planets orbital (sidereal) and synodic period depends on how far planet moves in one Earth year
for inner planets
Transits
! On rare occasions, an inner planet will be perfectly aligned with Sun during inferior conjunction, causing a transit across Suns surface
1 yr Psyn + 1 yr
The Analemma
! The analemma illustrates position of Sun with respect to mean solar time
! Rapid train travel required time to be standardized into time zones (time no longer local)
Thought Question How does mean solar time compare with standard time if you are at the far eastern edge of a time zone?
A.! Theyre the same. B.! The mean solar time is later than standard time. C.! The mean solar time is earlier than standard time.
Thought Question How does mean solar time compare with standard time if you are at the far eastern edge of a time zone?
A.! Theyre the same. B.! The mean solar time is later than standard time. C.! The mean solar time is earlier than standard time.
Universal Time
! Universal time (UT) is defined to be the mean solar time at 0 longitude. ! It is also known as Greenwich Mean Time (GMT) because 0 longitude is defined to pass through Greenwich, England ! It is the standard time used for astronomy and navigation around the world
Thought Question What happens to the moment of spring equinox in a leap year?
A.! It comes earlier than usual in the calendar year. B.! It comes later than usual in the calendar year. C.! Its date and time do not change.
Thought Question What happens to the moment of spring equinox in a leap year?
A.! It comes earlier than usual in the calendar year. B.! It comes later than usual in the calendar year. C.! Its date and time do not change.
S1.2 Celestial Coordinates and Motion in the Sky Our goals for learning:
! How do we locate objects on the celestial sphere? ! How do stars move through the local sky? ! How does the Sun move through the local sky?
! Each point in the sky corresponds to a particular location on the celestial sphere ! Equinoxes and solstices occur when Sun is at particular points on celestial sphere
Celestial Coordinates
! Right ascension: Like longitude on celestial sphere (measured in hours with respect to spring equinox). ! Declination: Like latitude on celestial sphere (measured in degrees above celestial equator)
! At the North Pole stars remain at same altitude as Earth rotates ! Stars altitude above horizon equals its declination
! At the Equator, all stars remain above horizon for exactly 12 hours each day ! Celestial equator passes overhead
! In north, stars with dec > (90 your latitude) are circumpolar ! Celestial equator is in south part of sky
Thought Question What is the path of the star Alpha Centauri (dec = -6050) as seen from 40 north latitude?
A.! Its circumpolar. B.! It rises and sets in the southern part of the sky. C.! It never rises.
! In south, stars with dec < (your latitude 90) are circumpolar ! Celestial equator is in north part of sky
Thought Question What is the path of the star Alpha Centauri (dec = -6050) as seen from 40 north latitude?
A.! Its circumpolar. B.! It rises and sets in the southern part of the sky. C.! It never rises.
Special Latitudes
! Arctic Circle (66.5N): Sun never sets on summer solstice ! Tropic of Cancer (23.5 N): Sun directly overhead at noon on summer solstice
Special Latitudes
! Antarctic Circle (66.5S): Sun never sets on winter solstice ! Tropic of Capricorn (23.5S): Sun directly overhead at noon on winter solstice
Thought Question Whats the Suns path at the Tropic of Capricorn on the winter solstice?
A.! Its overhead at noon. B.! It grazes the horizon at midnight. C.! It follows a path that stays in the southern part of the sky.
Thought Question Whats the Suns path at the Tropic of Capricorn on the winter solstice?
A.! Its overhead at noon. B.! It grazes the horizon at midnight. C.! It follows a path that stays in the southern part of the sky.
! An astrolabe can be used to measure star positions and to determine the time of day from them
! A cross-staff or sextant can be used to make accurate measurements of angles in the sky
GPS Navigation
! The Global Positioning System (GPS) uses a set of satellites in Earth orbit as artificial stars ! GPS devices use radio signals to determine your position relative to those satellites