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Lecture 3: 19 January 2010

This document summarizes key concepts from a lecture on discovering the universe. It discusses patterns in the night sky, including constellations, celestial poles, and how the visible night sky changes depending on latitude and time of year as the Earth orbits the Sun. It also summarizes the causes of seasons, including how the tilt of the Earth's axis relative to the Sun results in variations in sunlight and day length throughout the year, with summer and winter solstices and spring and fall equinoxes.

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osho35
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22 views

Lecture 3: 19 January 2010

This document summarizes key concepts from a lecture on discovering the universe. It discusses patterns in the night sky, including constellations, celestial poles, and how the visible night sky changes depending on latitude and time of year as the Earth orbits the Sun. It also summarizes the causes of seasons, including how the tilt of the Earth's axis relative to the Sun results in variations in sunlight and day length throughout the year, with summer and winter solstices and spring and fall equinoxes.

Uploaded by

osho35
Copyright
© Attribution Non-Commercial (BY-NC)
Available Formats
Download as PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
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LECTURE 3: DISCOVERING THE UNIVERSE

19 January 2010 Patterns in the Night Sky and Seasons

I. PATTERNS IN THE NIGHT SKY


References and Definitions:
Constellations: region of sky with well-defined borders. 88 official
constellations
Celestial (from star) sphere:
Celestial poles: directions directly over Earth’s north and south poles
Celestial equator: projection of Earth’s equator into space. Makes a
complete circle around celestial sphere
Ecliptic plane: path of the Sun as it appears to circle around the celestial
sphere once each year. Crosses the celestial equator at 23.5°.
Milky Way:
trace of our galaxy’s disk of stars as it appears from our location.
Local sky:
Horizon
Zenith (directly overhead)
Azimuth: direction along horizon
Altitude: angular height above horizon
Altitude of celestial pole in sky = latitude
Latitude and longitude (reference = Greenwich, UK)
Latitude: north-south position on Earth, varies from 0 at equator to
90° N or S at the poles
Longitude: east-west, with respect to a reference (prime meridian)
(Honolulu: 21°20’N, 157° 55’ W)

Angular size and distance:


size an object spans in the field of view (no distance information)
angle that appears to separate objects in the sky
Example: Moon size and distance

Motions of stars
Stars move across sky from East to West because of Earth’s rotation (west to
east)
Sky varies with latitude not longitude
Variation with time:
Visible constellations change as Earth orbits Sun
Cannot see constellations “behind” Sun as we look in the direction of
Sun

II. SEASONS
Length of day = Sun makes full circle in sky = 24 hours
Sidereal day = star makes full circle in sky = 23hr56mins
Difference due to motion of Earth around Sun about 1° per day

Seasons caused by tilt of Earth axis  its orientation relative to Sun changes
Summer solstice = June 21: maximum of Sun in northern hemisphere, most
direct sunlight
Winder solstice = December 21: minimum height of Sun in sky, lease direct
sunlight
Equinoxes: Spring equinox = around March 21, fall equinox = around
September 22. Sun rises and sets exactly due East and West. Sunlight
falls equally on both hemispheres.

III. ASSIGNMENT FOR NEXT THURSDAY:


Lecture 3: Chapter 2, sections 2.1, 2.2
Preparation for Thursday: Chapter 2, sections 2.3 and 2.4

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