The Cosmic Perspective (9th Edition)
9th Edition
ISBN: 9780134874364
Author: Jeffrey O. Bennett, Megan O. Donahue, Nicholas Schneider, Mark Voit
Publisher: PEARSON
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Chapter 21, Problem 51EAP
To determine
The mass of the supermassive black hole.
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Why are so many astronomical objects in the universe flat today? (Like the solar system, Saturn's ring, black hole accretion discs) Let's focus on our galaxy. Originally, the galaxy was a huge spherical cloud of gas and dust, much larger than it is today, and rotating much more slowly. Explain using gravity and the conservation of angular momentum, why the galaxy today is a flat disc that rotates faster.
Observations of the central region of the galaxy M87 indicate that stars which are 60 light years later from the centre are orbiting the central supermassive black hole at speeds of 730kms^-1. Estimate the lads of the black hole, in solar masses.(You can assume circular motion, e.g. if you get 3 solar masses, type in 3).
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Astronomical observations of our Milky Way galaxy indicate that it has a mass of about 8 1011 solar masses. A star orbiting near the galaxy's periphery is 5.6 104 light years from its center. (For your calculations, assume that the galaxy's mass is concentrated near its center.)
(a) What should the orbital period of that star be?_________yr
(b) If its period is 6.0x107 years instead, what is the mass of the galaxy? Such calculations are used to imply the existence of "dark matter" in the universe and have indicated, for example, the existence of very massive black holes at the centers of some galaxies._________ Solar Masses
Chapter 21 Solutions
The Cosmic Perspective (9th Edition)
Ch. 21 - Prob. 1VSCCh. 21 - Prob. 2VSCCh. 21 - Prob. 3VSCCh. 21 - Prob. 4VSCCh. 21 - Prob. 1EAPCh. 21 - Prob. 2EAPCh. 21 - Prob. 3EAPCh. 21 - Prob. 4EAPCh. 21 - Prob. 5EAPCh. 21 - Prob. 6EAP
Ch. 21 - Prob. 7EAPCh. 21 - Prob. 9EAPCh. 21 - Prob. 10EAPCh. 21 - Prob. 11EAPCh. 21 - Prob. 12EAPCh. 21 - Prob. 13EAPCh. 21 - Prob. 14EAPCh. 21 - Prob. 15EAPCh. 21 - Prob. 16EAPCh. 21 - Prob. 17EAPCh. 21 - Prob. 18EAPCh. 21 - Prob. 19EAPCh. 21 - Prob. 20EAPCh. 21 - Prob. 21EAPCh. 21 - Prob. 22EAPCh. 21 - Prob. 23EAPCh. 21 - Prob. 24EAPCh. 21 - Prob. 25EAPCh. 21 - Prob. 26EAPCh. 21 - Prob. 27EAPCh. 21 - Prob. 28EAPCh. 21 - Prob. 29EAPCh. 21 - Prob. 30EAPCh. 21 - Prob. 31EAPCh. 21 - Prob. 32EAPCh. 21 - Prob. 34EAPCh. 21 - Prob. 36EAPCh. 21 - Life Story of a Spiral. Imagine that you are a...Ch. 21 - Prob. 39EAPCh. 21 - Prob. 40EAPCh. 21 - Prob. 41EAPCh. 21 - Prob. 42EAPCh. 21 - Prob. 43EAPCh. 21 - Prob. 44EAPCh. 21 - Prob. 45EAPCh. 21 - Prob. 46EAPCh. 21 - Prob. 47EAPCh. 21 - A Nearby Starburst. The galaxy M82, shown in...Ch. 21 - Prob. 49EAPCh. 21 - Prob. 50EAPCh. 21 - Prob. 51EAPCh. 21 - Prob. 52EAPCh. 21 - Prob. 53EAP
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- Astronomers believe there are something like 100 million neutron stars in the Galaxy, yet we have only found about 2000 pulsars in the Milky Way. Give several reasons these numbers are so different. Explain each reason.arrow_forwardDescribe the evidence indicating that a black hole may be at the center of our Galaxy.arrow_forwardThe globular clusters revolve around the Galaxy in highly elliptical orbits. Where would you expect the clusters to spend most of their time? (Think of Kepler’s laws.) At any given time, would you expect most globular clusters to be moving at high or low speeds with respect to the center of the Galaxy? Why?arrow_forward
- The first picture is some background information need help answering the first question about the escape velocity from the andromeda Galaxyarrow_forwardThe best evidence for a black hole at the center of the Galaxy also comes from the application of Kepler’s third law. Suppose a star at a distance of 20 light-hours from the center of the Galaxy has an orbital speed of 6200 km/s. How much mass must be located inside its orbit?arrow_forwardExplain what the mass-to-light ratio is and why it is smaller in spiral galaxies with regions of star formation than in elliptical galaxies.arrow_forward
- The Sun is moving at 220 ??/? around the Galactic Center at a more-or-less constant distance of 8.5 ???. To appreciate how remarkable this is, consider the following questions: a) How massive would the Sun have to be for the Earth to have an orbital velocity of 220 km/s at 1 AU? b) How fast would the Earth move if it was in orbit around the Sun at a distance of 8.5 kpc? Of course, you may ignore the effects of all other stars in this calculation.arrow_forward(Astronomy) Supernova Ejection Times. Observations show that the gas ejected from SN 1987A is moving at about 10,000 km⁄s. How long will it take to travel one astronomical unit in hours? (Note that 1 AU equals 1.5 × 108 km)arrow_forwardThe supermassive black hole at the center or our galaxy (Sagittarius A*) has a mass equal to 4.3 million Suns (the mass of the Sun is 1.99 × 1030 kg). The distance from Sgr A* to Earth is 7,940 parsecs, where one parsec is equal to 3.09 × 1016 m. (a) What is the gravitational force that Sgr A* exerts on a 75 kg person on Earth, in units of Newtons? Hint: use Newton’s law of universal gravitation. (b) Suppose the same person is sitting 1.0 meter away from a paperclip with a mass of 1.0 grams. What is the gravitational force that the paperclip exerts on the person? (c) Compare the forces from parts (a) and (b). Which is greater?arrow_forward
- Suppose the Sagittarius dwarf galaxy merges completely with the Milky Way and adds 150,000 stars to it. Estimate the percentage change in the mass of the Milky Way. Will this be enough mass to affect the orbit of the Sun around the galactic center? Assume that all of the Sagittarius galaxy’s stars end up in the nuclear bulge of the Milky Way Galaxy and explain your answer.arrow_forwardThe first clue that the Galaxy contains a lot of dark matter was the observation that the orbital velocities of stars did not decreases with increasing distance from the center of the Galaxy. Construct a rotation curve for the solar system by using the orbital velocities of the planets, which can be found in Appendix F. How does this curve differ from the rotation curve for the Galaxy? What does it tell you about where most of the mass in the solar system is concentrated?arrow_forwardThe Large Magellanic Cloud has about one-tenth the number of stars found in our own Galaxy. Suppose the mix of high- and low-mass stars is exactly the same in both galaxies. Approximately how often does a supernova occur in the Large Magellanic Cloud?arrow_forward
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