The Cosmic Perspective Fundamentals (2nd Edition)
2nd Edition
ISBN: 9780133889567
Author: Jeffrey O. Bennett, Megan O. Donahue, Nicholas Schneider, Mark Voit
Publisher: PEARSON
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Chapter 1, Problem 8QQ
When we say the universe is expanding, we mean that (a) everything in the universe is growing in size (b) the average distance between galaxies growing with time (c) the number stars in the universe is growing with time.
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mathematician Archimedes, responding to a claim that the number of grains of sand was infinite,
calculated that the number of grains of sand needed to fill the universe was on the order of 1063. Our
understanding of the size of the universe has changed since then, and we now know that the
observable universe alone is a sphere with a radius of 1026 m. Estimating the size of a grain of sand,
A) Approximately how many grains of sand would fill the observable universe?
B) How many times larger or smaller is this number than Archimedes' result?
If we assume that the universe has been expanding at its current rate for its entire history, how old is the universe?
Your friends are talking about Olber's Paradox:
Friend 1: When the universe was quite young, it was also quite small, and therefore light
was trapped inside the universe. This is why we don't see light from the edge of the
universe in every direction.
Friend 2: No, Olber's Paradox describes only light from stars, not from galaxies, and why
you can't use light from distant stars to see at night.
Friend 3: You're both right and you're both wrong. The paradox concerns itself with the
expansion of the universe, and explains why light from the early universe was able to be
released.
Are any of them right, in part or in whole?
Chapter 1 Solutions
The Cosmic Perspective Fundamentals (2nd Edition)
Ch. 1 - Choose the best answer to each of the following....Ch. 1 - Choose the best answer to each of the following....Ch. 1 - Choose the best answer to each of the following....Ch. 1 - Prob. 4QQCh. 1 - Could we see a galaxy that is 20 billion...Ch. 1 - Choose the best answer to each of the following....Ch. 1 - Choose the best answer to each of the following....Ch. 1 - When we say the universe is expanding, we mean...Ch. 1 - Choose the best answer to each of the following....Ch. 1 - Choose the best answer to each of the following....
Ch. 1 - Choose the best answer to each of the following....Ch. 1 - Choose the best answer to each of the following....Ch. 1 - Explain all answers clearly, using complete...Ch. 1 - Alien Technology, Some people believe that Earth...Ch. 1 - Explain all answers clearly, using complete...Ch. 1 - Explain all answers clearly, using complete...Ch. 1 - Explain all answers clearly, using complete...Ch. 1 - Prob. 18SEQCh. 1 - Explain all answers clearly, using complete...Ch. 1 - Explain all answers clearly, using complete...Ch. 1 - Explain all answers clearly, using complete...Ch. 1 - Explain all answers clearly, using complete...
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- What evidence shows that the Universe is expanding? What evidence shows that the Universe began with a Big Bang?arrow_forwardConstruct a timeline for the universe and indicate when various significant events occurred, from the beginning of the expansion to the formation of the Sun to the appearance of humans on Earth.arrow_forwardAssume the observable Universe is charge neutral, and that it contains n nuclei (hydrogen plus helium nuclei, ignoring other elements). Take the helium mass fraction as 1/4. How many electrons are there in the observable Universe? Enter your answer in scientific notation with one decimal place. Values: n = 1*10^80arrow_forward
- How long ago was that galaxy right next door to our own Galaxy if it has always been receding at its present rate? Express your answer in years. Since the universe began when all galaxies were very close together, this number is a rough estimate for the age of the universe.arrow_forwardConsider three periods in the history of the Universe: one million years after the Big Bang (age = 1 million years), about five billion years ago (age = 9 billion years), and today. What is the ranking in the expansion rate of the Universe in these three period, from fastest to slowest expansion: O 1 million years, today, 9 billion years. today, 1 million years, 9 billion years. today, 9 billion years, 1 million years. O 1 million years, 9 billion years, today.arrow_forwardAssume the observable Universe is charge neutral, and that it contains n nuclei (hydrogen plus helium nuclei, ignoring other elements). Take the helium mass fraction as 1/4. How many electrons are there in the observable Universe? Enter your answer in scientific notation with one decimal place. Value: n = 4*1080arrow_forward
- How many galaxies are there in the universe?arrow_forwardAssume the observable Universe is charge neutral, and that it contains n nuclei (hydrogen plus helium nuclei, ignoring other elements). Take the helium mass fraction as 1/4. How many electrons are there in the observable Universe? Enter your answer in scientific notation with one decimal place.arrow_forwardThe light coming from stars is closer to red (long wavelength, low frequency) than we would expect. What does this imply? Your answer: the universe is expanding the universe is rotating the universe is shrinking the universe is staticarrow_forward
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