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How can parallax be used to determined which of two stars is closer to earth?
Wiki User
∙ 13y ago
Parallax is when a distant object appears to have moved, when viewed from different positions. So 2 observers separated by a known distance measure the angle from level to the star. We can now find a triangle with the known values: Angle-Side-Angle (the angles will have to be adjusted for the curvature of the Earth). The third angle (the vertex which is at the star) can be found by subtracting the other two angles from 180°. The other sides can be calculated using the Law of Sines: a/sin(A) = b/sin(B) = c/sin(C).
The angle measurements must be very accurate, because stars are very far away. Having a large enough separation between the two observers will help to increase accuracy as well.
Wiki User
∙ 13y ago
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How does parallax shift varies with distance?
The closer the star, the greater the parallax angle, which is why you can't measure the distance to very distant stars using the parallax method.
What is a stars parallax?
The parallax refers to the apparent change in the star's position, due to Earth's movement around the Sun. This parallax can be used to measure the distance to nearby stars (the closer the star, the larger will its parallax be).
What is the effect of distance from an object on parallax angles?
The parallax should get smaller and harder to notice although in astronomy there are techniques used to find the parallax of stars by using the Earth's position around the sun to find the distance of the stars.
Why do we measure the movement of stars?
Parallax is the apparent change in position of an object when you look at it from different angles. Astronomers often us parallax to measure distances to nearby stars. This method can be used to determine stars' distances up to 400 light-years from Earth.
What planet would have no advantage of any kind over earth for making parallax measurements?
You have to ask yourself what is an advantage when parallax measurements are being made? . . parallax happens when you move to a different place and the object you see look a little different, the closest ones appear to have moved more than the ones that are further away. In astronomy parallax is created when the Earth is in opposite points of its orbit. Stars that are close appear to have moved a little, relative to the mass of stars that are a long distance away. Parallax was not observed before the 19th century, and the lack of parallax was always used to 'prove' that the Earth could not possibly be going round the Sun. It was only in the 19th century that parallax was observed, but it was only very tiny movements of the closest stars. It forced people to realise that the stars are incredibly far away and the Earth does go round the Sun after all, so it was extra evidence of the Sun being at the centre of the solar system. A parallax measurement is easier to make if the baseline is longer, so the answer to your question is that Mercury and Venus have no advantage for making parallax measurements.
Distance to nearby stars can be determined from?
stellar parallax
Is parallax a star?
The parallax refers to the apparent change in the star's position, due to Earth's movement around the Sun. This parallax can be used to measure the distance to nearby stars (the closer the star, the larger will its parallax be).
What does a big parralax say about a stars distance?
The larger a star's parallax, the closer the star is to us.
What can distances to nearby stars determined by?
Stellar parallax
Which stars have the largest parallax angles-?
the stars nearest Earth
How does parallax shift varies with distance?
The closer the star, the greater the parallax angle, which is why you can't measure the distance to very distant stars using the parallax method.
What is the apparent shift of stars as earth orbits the sun?
parallax :)
What is measure of the amount of a stars light received on earth?
Parallax
Do all-stars have measurable parallax angles?
No, only the closer ones have a parallax that is large enough to be measured. The first star to have its parallax measured was 61 Cygni, measured by Bessel in 1838 and found to be at a distance of 10.3 light years, later corrected to 11.4. The closest star Proxima Centauri has a parallax of only about 0.7 seconds of arc. Before then the absence of parallax for the stars was considered an important part of the case that the Earth cannot be revolving round the Sun.
Parallax would be easier to measure if?
Parallax would be easier to measure if the Earth were farther from the sun. This way, there will be a wider angle to the stars using the parallax method.
What effects doe lengthening the distance from the observer have on parallax?
The parallax should get smaller and harder to notice although in astronomy there are techniques used to find the parallax of stars by using the Earth's position around the sun to find the distance of the stars.
What is closer to earth - the sun or other stars?
the sun is closer ot the earth than the other stars are .
