Suppose an extrasolar planet's orbit around its star is edge-on to our line of sight. How is it detected, and what information can be obtained in this case?
What will be an ideal response?
Because the planet passes directly in front of its star, it blocks some of the star's light. The more light that is blocked, the bigger the planet must be, so by measuring how much of the star's light is lost during such transits we can learn the planet's diameter. The time between transits reveals the planet's period, the size of its orbit and possibly its mass. Combining the mass and size of the planet can yield its density.
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Most active galactic nuclei are found at large distances from us, with relatively few nearby. What does this imply?
A) Supermassive black holes existed only when the universe was young, and no longer exist today. B) Active galactic nuclei can form only at large distances from the Milky Way. C) Active galactic nuclei exist tend to become less active as they age. D) The jets seen in many active galactic nuclei must cause them to move far away from us.
In music the 3rd harmonic is which overtone?
A) 4th B) 2nd C) 1st D) 3rd E) 5th
If you are standing on the floor then you actions (or lack of action) can count as a test of
a. Newton's first law b. Newton's second law c. Newton's third law d. None of the other choices are correct.
An object is pulled with two forces, 10 N northward and 15 N southward. The direction of the net force is to the
A) north. B) south. C) east. D) west. E) none of the above