Universe: Stars And Galaxies
Universe: Stars And Galaxies
6th Edition
ISBN: 9781319115098
Author: Roger Freedman, Robert Geller, William J. Kaufmann
Publisher: W. H. Freeman
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Chapter 22, Problem 16Q
To determine

The possibility of detecting the 21cm radio emission from interstellar hydrogen.

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The current precision of the Doppler shifts in the absorption lines in stellar spectra is ~3 km s-'. Show that it would not be possible to detect the presence of the Earth from a distant solar system using the Doppler method. State one method that might allow the Earth to be detected. (The Earth's mass is 1/333 000 that of the Sun. 1 AU = 1.49× 10"m.) 2.
If the hottest star in the Carina Nebula has a surface temperature of 51,000 K, at what wavelength (in nm) does it radiate the most energy?  Hint: Use Wien's law:  ?max =  2.90 ✕ 106 nm · K T How does that compare with 91.2 nm, the wavelength of photons with just enough energy to ionize hydrogen? -The wavelength calculated above is shorter than 91.2 nm. Photons at this calculated wavelength will have more than enough energy to ionize hydrogen. -The wavelength calculated above is longer than 91.2 nm. Photons at this calculated wavelength will have more than enough energy to ionize hydrogen.   -The wavelength calculated above is shorter than 91.2 nm. Photons at this calculated wavelength will not have enough energy to ionize hydrogen. -The wavelength calculated above is longer than 91.2 nm. Photons at this calculated wavelength will not have enough energy to ionize hydrogen.
A typical hydrogen atom in interstellar space only undergoes a spin-flip once every 107 years. How then is it at all possible to detect the 21-cm radio emission from interstellar hydrogen?
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