Horizons: Exploring the Universe (MindTap Course List)
14th Edition
ISBN: 9781305960961
Author: Michael A. Seeds, Dana Backman
Publisher: Cengage Learning
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Chapter 5, Problem 7P
H does the resolving power of the 5-rn telescope on Mount Palomar near San Diego compare with that of the 2.5-rn Hubble Space Telescope? Why does the HST generally still outperform the Palomar 5-rn telescope?
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What is the limit of resolution for a telescope lens with a diameter of 120 cm when it observes a star at a distance of 4 light-years? Use the wavelength of l = 550 nm in your calculations.
a. What is the resolving power (in arc seconds) of a 84 cm (33 in.) telescope at a wavelength of 560 nm?
b. What do two stars 1.5 arc seconds apart look like through this telescope?
- The two points of light are well separated from each other.
-The two points of light are only just separated from each other — they are distinguishable but appear to touch.
- The two points of light are indistinguishable from each other.
Hubble Versus Arecibo. The Hubble Space Telescope has an aperture of 2.4 m and focuses visible light (380–750 nm). The Arecibo radio telescope in Puerto Rico is 305 m (1000 ft) in diameter (it is built in a mountain valley) and focuses radio waves of wavelength 75 cm. (a) Under optimal viewing conditions, what is the smallest crater that each of these telescopes could resolve on our moon? (b) If the Hubble Space Telescope were to be converted to surveillance use, what is the highest orbit above the surface of the earth it could have and still be able to resolve the license plate (not the letters, just the plate) of a car on the ground? Assume optimal viewing conditions, so that the resolution is diffraction limited.
Chapter 5 Solutions
Horizons: Exploring the Universe (MindTap Course List)
Ch. 5 - Prob. 1RQCh. 5 - Prob. 2RQCh. 5 - Prob. 3RQCh. 5 - Prob. 4RQCh. 5 - Prob. 5RQCh. 5 - Prob. 6RQCh. 5 - Prob. 7RQCh. 5 - Prob. 8RQCh. 5 - Prob. 9RQCh. 5 - Prob. 10RQ
Ch. 5 - Prob. 11RQCh. 5 - Prob. 12RQCh. 5 - Prob. 13RQCh. 5 - Prob. 14RQCh. 5 - Prob. 1DQCh. 5 - Consider the “atmospheric windows” of Earth’s...Ch. 5 - The thickness of the plastic in plastic bags is...Ch. 5 - What is the wavelength of radio waves transmitted...Ch. 5 - Prob. 3PCh. 5 - Prob. 4PCh. 5 - Prob. 5PCh. 5 - Prob. 6PCh. 5 - H does the resolving power of the 5-rn telescope...Ch. 5 - If you build a telescope with a focal length of...Ch. 5 - Prob. 9PCh. 5 - Prob. 10PCh. 5 - Prob. 1LTLCh. 5 - The star images in the photo in Figure UN 5-4 are...Ch. 5 - The X-ray image in Figure UN 5-5 shows the remains...
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Need a deep-dive on the concept behind this application? Look no further. Learn more about this topic, physics and related others by exploring similar questions and additional content below.Similar questions
- The 305-m-diameter Arecibo radio telescope pictured in Figure 4.20 detects radio waves with a 4.00-cm average wavelength. (a) What is the angle between two just-resolvable point sources for this telescope? (b) How close together could these point sources be at the 2 million light-year distance of the Andromeda Galaxy? Figure 4.20 A 305-m-diameter paraboloid at Arecibo in Puerto Rico is lined with reflective material, making it into a radio telescope. It is the largest curved focusing dish in the world. Although D for Arecibo is much larger than for the Hubble Telescope, it detects radiation of a much longer wavelength and its diffraction limit is significantly poorer than Hubble’s. The Arecibo telescope is still very useful, because important information is carried by radio waves that is not carried by visible light. (credit: Jeff Hitchcock)arrow_forwardRadio telescopes are telescopes used for the detection of radio emission from space. Because radio waves have much longer wavelengths than visible light, the diameter of a radio telescope must be very large to provide good resolution. For example, the radio telescope in Penticton, BC in Canada, has a diameter of 26 m and can be operated at frequencies as high as 6.6 GHz. (a) What is the wavelength corresponding to this frequency? (b) What is the angular separation of two radio sources that can be resolved by this telescope? (c) Compare the telescope’s resolution with the angular size of the moon.arrow_forwardThe dean of a university located near the ocean (who was not a science major in college) proposes building an infrared telescope right on campus and operating it in a nice heated dome so that astronomers will be comfortable on cold winter nights. Criticize this proposal, giving your reasoning.arrow_forward
- What is the minimum angular separation of two stars that are just-resolvable by the 8.1-m Gemini South telescope, if atmospheric effects do not limit resolution? Use 550 nm for the wavelength of the light from the stars.arrow_forward(a) The dwarf planet Pluto and its moon, Charon, are separated by 19,600 km. Neglecting atmospheric effects, should the 5.08-m-diameter Palomar Mountain telescope be able to resolve these bodies when they are 4.50109 km from Earth? Assume an average wavelength of 550 nm. (b) In actuality, it is just barely possible to discern that Pluto and Charon are separate bodies using a ground-based telescope. What are the reasons for this?arrow_forwardHow far apart must two objects be on the moon to be resolvable by the 8.1-m-diameter Gemini North telescope at Mauna Kea, Hawaii, if only the diffraction effects of the telescope aperture limit the resolution? Assume 550 nm for the wavelength of light and 400,000 km for the distance to the moon.arrow_forward
- What is the approximate diffraction limit in arc second, of a 99 meter diameter radio telescope observing 23cm radiation ?arrow_forwardA binary star system in the constellation Orion has an angular interstellar separation of 1.00 × 10–5 rad. If λ = 500 nm, what is the smallest diameter the telescope can have to just resolve the two stars?arrow_forwardOne important goal of astronomers is to have a telescope in space that can resolve planets like the earth orbiting other stars. If a planet orbits its star at a distance of 1.5 * 1011 m (the radius of the earth’s orbit around the sun) and the telescope has a mirror of diameter 8.0 m, how far from the telescope could the star and its planet be if the wavelength used was (a) 690 nm and (b) 1400 nm? Use the Rayleigh criterion and give your answers in light-years (1 ly = 9.46 * 1015 m).arrow_forward
- What is the angular resolution limit (degrees) set by diffraction for the 224-cmcm mirror diameter telescope (λλ=560 nmnm)?arrow_forward(a) The planet Pluto and its Moon Charon are separatedby 19,600 km. Neglecting atmospheric effects, should the5.08-m-diameter Mount Palomar telescope be able to resolvethese bodies when they are 4.50×109km from Earth?Assume an average wavelength of 550 nm.(b) In actuality, it is just barely possible to discern that Plutoand Charon are separate bodies using an Earth-basedtelescope. What are the reasons for this?arrow_forwardThe Square Kilometers Array (SKA) is a set of thousands of radio dipole antennae and telescope dishes that is planned to be build, starting in 2016. It is to spread out over a distance of more then 3000 km. The combined signals will have a resolving power equivalent to that of an aperture of approximately 1000 km (a) If the detector are turned to a frequency of , what is the angular resolution of SKA? (b) Clouds of interstellar hydrogen radiate at a frequency used in part (a). What must be the separation distance of two clouds at the center of galaxy, 26000 light years away, if they are to be resolved?arrow_forward
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