Most nearby stars move relative to the Sun at speeds below about 30 km/s. Suppose you observe a nearby star that is moving much faster than this (say, 300 km/s). Which of the following is a likely explanation for its high speed?

A) It is probably a halo star that is currently passing through the disk.
B) It is a very young star, recently formed.
C) It has been pushed to high speed by the shock wave from a nearby supernova.
D) It is a high mass star.


A) It is probably a halo star that is currently passing through the disk.

Physics & Space Science

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How do we know where comets come from?

How do we know where comets come from?

  • The comets from the Oort cloud don’t produce a tail, but those from the Kuiper belt do
  • Those that come from the Kuiper belt are composed of slightly different materials than those from the Oort cloud
  • Astronomers only guess where these comets come from, they don’t know for sure
  • The comets from the Oort cloud travel at much greater velocities than those from the Kuiper belt
  • The comets from either location have a trajectory or pathway that can be traced back to their starting point once we see them

Physics & Space Science

The Kelvin temperature of an ideal gas is doubled and the volume is halved. How is the pressure affected?

A. increases by a factor of 2 B. increases by a factor of 4 C. stays the same D. decreases by a factor of 2 E. decreases by a factor of 4

Physics & Space Science

Two single charged ions moving perpendicularly to a uniform magnetic field (B = 0.40 T) with speeds of 5 000 km/s follow circular paths that differ in diameter by 5.0 cm. What is the difference in the mass of these two ions?

a. 2.6 × 10^?28 kg b. 6.4 × 10^?28 kg c. 3.2 × 10^?28 kg d. 5.1 × 10^?28 kg e. 1.1 × 10^?28 kg

Physics & Space Science

The theory that the collapse of a massive star's iron core produces neutrinos was supported by

a. the size and structure of the Crab nebula. b. laboratory measurements of the mass of the neutrino. c. the brightening of supernovae a few days after they are first visible. d. underground counts from solar neutrinos. e. the detection of neutrinos from the supernova of 1987.

Physics & Space Science