![]() ![]() ![]() The orbits of some asteroids take them close to the Sun, which also takes them across the paths of the planets. Most asteroids can be found in a belt between the orbits of Mars and Jupiter. ![]() Bright objects have a low apparent magnitude while dim objects will have a higher apparent magnitude.Ī small planetary body in orbit around the Sun, larger than a meteoroid but smaller than a planet. The apparent brightness of an object in the sky as it appears to an observer on Earth. The point in the orbit of the Moon or other satellite where it is farthest from the Earth. The point in the orbit of a planet or other celestial body where it is farthest from the Sun. The size of the opening through which light passes in an optical instrument such as a camera or telescope. The point of greatest separation of two stars, such as in a binary star system. In antimatter, protons have a negative charge while electrons have a positive charge.Ī point that is on the direct opposite side of a planet. Matter consisting of particles with charges opposite that of ordinary matter. The angular distance of an object above the horizon. A perfect mirror would have an albedo of 100% while a black hole would have an albedo of 0%.Ī dark or light marking on the surface of an object that may or may not be a geological or topographical feature. The reflective property of a non-luminous object. As the gas spirals in, it becomes hot and emits light or even X-radiation.Ī stone meteorite that contains no chondrules. The process by where dust and gas accumulated into larger bodies such as stars and planets.Ī disk of gas that accumulates around a center of gravitational attraction, such as a white dwarf, neutron star, or black hole. Absolute zero is reached at 0 degrees Kelvin or -273.16 degrees Celsius.Ī process by where the atmosphere melts away and removes the surface material of an incoming meteorite. The temperature at which the motion of all atoms and molecules stops and no heat is given off. On this scale, the Sun has an absolute magnitude of +4.8 while it has an apparent magnitude of -26.7 because it is so close. Absolute magnitude measures how bright an object would appear if it were exactly 10 parsecs (about 33 light-years) away from Earth. ![]() Though unimaginable, it gives us the idea that the earth may be big, but the distance in space is definitely immense.A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y ZĪ scale for measuring the actual brightness of a celestial object without accounting for the distance of the object. Roughly converted to miles would give us an approximate value of 19 million trillion (is there such a thing?) miles. Let’s say that a parsec is about 30 trillion kilometers. Using earth-land measurements for distances in space is simply mind-boggling, to say the least. For convenience, astrologists looked for a way to emphasize a great distinction in measurements, especially if you’re talking about measuring galaxies or clusters in space. In reality, astronomers cannot use the normal units of measurements such as meters and square meters as the measurements would be too big a number. The mega parsec was said to have been first used by the international scientific and astronomical community in the year 1920. So if one megaparsec is equal to one million parsecs, then that’s about 3.3 million light years away. It is said that one parsec is equal to about 3.3 light years. Just like the parsec (an abbreviation for Parallax of one arcsecond) and kiloparsec (equivalent to 1,000 parsecs, or KPC for short), the megaparsec (or MPC) is a measurement unit that is used in astronomy to measure the great, vast distance between galaxies in intergalactic space. ![]()
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