EBK LIFE IN THE UNIVERSE
4th Edition
ISBN: 8220101460417
Author: SHOSTAK
Publisher: YUZU
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Textbook Question
Chapter 1, Problem 22POS
The Science of Astrobiology. The study of astrobiology is sometimes criticized as being the study of something for which we have no data, since we do not yet have evidence of life beyond Earth. Is astrobiology a science or speculation? Defend your opinion.
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Check out a sample textbook solutionStudents have asked these similar questions
Which of the following is least reasonable regarding the difficulty in contacting extraterrestrial life using space flight and radio communication.
Group of answer choices
Space flight to the nearest star would take thousands of years with current technology.
Even if another intelligent civilization is within a few hundred light-years of us, conversations would be very slow with a turnaround time of decades or even centuries.
The spacecraft that NASA sent to Proxima Centauri a few years ago should be approaching its target within a decade or two, depending on solar wind conditions.
Earth has been broadcasting at radio wavelengths since the 1930's, so any civilization within a radius of about 100 light-years or so could have received the broadcast by now.
Without some major breakthrough, interstellar space flight is totally impractical.
Imagine that we discovered a new planet that has the potential to support
life. This planet has plenty of water on its surface and carbon dioxide in its
atmosphere, and a nice, comfortable temperature similar to Earth. The
only difference is that this planet orbits a star that produces green light
only.
If we took some plants from Earth and planted them on this new planet,
would our plants be able to grow? Explain your answer.
Tutorial
A radio broadcast left Earth in 1925. How far in light years has it traveled?
If there is, on average, 1 star system per 400 cubic light years, how many star systems has this broadcast
reached?
Assume that the fraction of these star systems that have planets is 0.30 and that, in a given planetary
system, the average number of planets that have orbited in the habitable zone for 4 billion years is 0.85. How
many possible planets with life could have heard this signal?
Part 1 of 3
To figure out how many light years a signal has traveled we need to know how long since the signal left Earth.
If the signal left in 1925, distance in light years = time since broadcast left Earth.
d = tnow - tbroadcast
d =
light years
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Chapter 1 Solutions
EBK LIFE IN THE UNIVERSE
Ch. 1 - Why are scientists interested in the possibility...Ch. 1 - People have long been interested in life beyond...Ch. 1 - Prob. 3RQCh. 1 - Prob. 4RQCh. 1 - What do we mean by a habitable world? Does a...Ch. 1 - What do we mean by the universality of physics and...Ch. 1 - Besides Earth, what worlds in our solar system...Ch. 1 - Prob. 8RQCh. 1 - Prob. 9RQCh. 1 - What do we mean by astrobiology? What are the...
Ch. 1 - An extrasolar planet is (a) a planet that is...Ch. 1 - A habitable planet is (a) a planet that has oceans...Ch. 1 - Prob. 13TYUCh. 1 - Prob. 14TYUCh. 1 - The correct order for the eight official planets...Ch. 1 - Today, the research known as SETI is conducted...Ch. 1 - Prob. 17TYUCh. 1 - Scientists today are interested in searching for...Ch. 1 - Based on current evidence, the object in our solar...Ch. 1 - Prob. 20TYUCh. 1 - Universal Laws. Briefly discuss how the idea that...Ch. 1 - The Science of Astrobiology. The study of...Ch. 1 - Conducting the Search. Given the large number of...Ch. 1 - Funding for Astrobiology. Imagine that you are a...
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- Why are we limited to finding life on planets orbiting other stars to situations where the biosphere has created planet-scale changes?arrow_forwardWhat are the advantages to using radio waves for communication between civilizations that live around different stars? List as many as you can.arrow_forwardIf life is based on information, what is that information?arrow_forward
- What are two characteristic properties of life that distinguish it from nonliving things?arrow_forwardWhat is the difference between chemical evolution and biological evolution?arrow_forwardTutorial A radio broadcast left Earth in 1923. How far in light years has it traveled? If there is, on average, 1 star system per 400 cubic light years, how many star systems has this broadcast reached? Assume that the fraction of these star systems that have planets is 0.50 and that, in a given planetary system, the average number of planets that have orbited in the habitable zone for 4 billion years is 0.40. How many possible planets with life could have heard this signal? Part 1 of 3 To figure out how many light years a signal has traveled we need to know how long since the signal left Earth. If the signal left in 1923, distance in light years = time since broadcast left Earth. d = tnow - broadcast d = 97 97 light years Part 2 of 3 Since the radio signal travels in all directions, it expanded as a sphere with a radius equal to the distance it has traveled so far. To determine the number of star systems this signal has reached, we need to determine the volume of that sphere. V, = Vb…arrow_forward
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