Introduction:
The Purpose of this lab is to become familiarized with
the night sky and how to determine where stars lie on the celestial sphere.
Procedures:
In this lab we viewed the night sky with our own eyes,
as well as the aid of StarChart (an app for iPhone and android), a telescope
pointed at various celestial objects, physical star charts, a list of
constellations, and our hands to determine Altitude and Azimuth of objects in
the sky. An open hand held at arm’s length is approximately 20 degrees across
the sky, a closed fist is approximately 10 degrees, and a single finger is
around 2.
Results:
A) Using
StarChart on your phone:
1. Identify
as many constellations as you can that are currently visible. Mark them for
later reference.
· Ursa Major
· Ursa minor
· Cassiopeia
· Orion
· Canis Major
· Canis Minor
2. Find
the constellations of the zodiac.
· Taurus
· Gemini
· Leo
B) Locate
the moon. If it is visible:
1. What
is the phase of the moon?
· Waxing Gibbous
2. What
is its approximate altitude and azimuth?
· Altitude: 70 degrees
· Azimuth: 175 degrees
3. Can
you cover it up with the tip of your finger, at arm’s length with one eye
closed?
· Yes
4. Knowing
that the width of your finger is approximately two degrees when held at arm’s
length, what is the approximate angular diameter of the moon?
· One Degree
5. Is
it easier or harder to see stars next to the moon? Why might that be?
· It is harder due to light pollution from the moon.
6. What
craters can you identify?
· None (I also have eyesight that is not the best).
7. What
maria can you identify?
· Most of the maria on the right side of the moon was identifiable.
Easily seen was Mare Serenitatis, and Mare Tranquilitatis.
C) Locate
as many planets as you can and identify the constellations they are in.
1. At
approximately what altitude and azimuth angles are they located at? What is the
time of your observations?
|
Planet
|
Altitude
|
Azimuth
|
Time Observed
|
|
Jupiter
|
20
|
90
|
9:02 PM
|
D) If
they are visible, Find the Orion nebula and the Andromeda galaxy.
1. Were
you able to see that they are “fuzzy” and and not “star like” single points of
light?
· Yes
2. At
approximately what altitude and azimuth angles are they located at? What is the
time of your observations?
|
Celestial Object
|
Altitude (degrees)
|
Azimuth (degrees)
|
Time Observed
|
|
Andromeda
|
60
|
310
|
9:04 PM
|
|
Orion Nebula
|
50
|
195
|
9:06 PM
|
3. When
you looked at the Andromeda Galaxy, you were seeing the light of a 100 billion
stars. Could you tell? Was it really bright? If not, why not?
· No, it is not very bright because of how vast the distance is
between us and the Andromeda galaxy.
F) Names
of stars:
1. Identify
five of the brightest stars in the sky right now by name. Keep in mind the
brightest star in any one constellation can still be fainter than the second or
even third brightest star in another constellation.
· Sirius
· Proceon
· Beetlejuice
· Polaris
· Capella
2. What
are their approximate altitudes and azimuth angles and what time did you make
the observations?
|
Stars
|
Altitude (degrees)
|
Azimuth (degrees)
|
|
Sirius
|
40
|
180
|
|
Proceon
|
60
|
140
|
|
Betelgeuse
|
65
|
190
|
|
Rigel
|
45
|
200
|
|
Capella
|
80
|
290
|
· Time Observed between 9:15 and 9:30 PM
G) Find
Polaris.
1. To
the nearest two degrees, how many degrees above the horizon is it (altitude)?
· Altitude: 36 degrees
2. What
is the azimuth angle of Polaris?
· Azimuth: 0 degrees (due North)
3. How
does that compare to the latitude of Springfield (-37.1950 Degrees North)
· The altitude of Polaris is very close to Springfield’s own latitude.
Conclusion:
Since we were using the human eye for our
observations, a lot of the measurements are likely inaccurate. This, combined
with unideal weather conditions leads to missing some of the stars in the sky. (I tried to include pictures with this report, but blogger won't let me include them for some reason.)
No comments:
Post a Comment