Foundations of Astronomy (MindTap Course List)
14th Edition
ISBN: 9781337399920
Author: Michael A. Seeds, Dana Backman
Publisher: Cengage Learning
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Textbook Question
Chapter 25, Problem 21RQ
Name three locations in our Solar System to search for Earth-like life and explain your choices.
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Which of the following seems least reasonable regarding life on Earth?
Group of answer choices
There is much scientific evidence suggesting that all creatures living on Earth today appear to have evolved from a common ancestor.
Louis Pasteur discredited the concept of spontaneous generation by demonstrating that even bacteria and other microorganisms arise from parents resembling themselves.
There is ample physical evidence that the earliest life forms on Earth were multicellular creatures, perhaps resembling some of our primitive fish.
When the earth formed some 4.6 billion years ago, it was a lifeless, inhospitable place.
Before the mid-17th century, most people believed that God had created humankind and other higher organisms and that insects, frogs, and other small creatures could arise spontaneously in mud or decaying matter
About billion years into its development, the Earth it was teeming with organisms resembling blue-green algae.
A radio broadcast left Earth in 1911. How far in light years has it traveled?
If there is, on average, 1 star system per 400 cubic light years, how many star systems has this broadcast reached?
Assume that the fraction of these star systems that have planets is 0.50 and that, in a given planetary system, the average number of planets that have orbited in the habitable zone for 4 billion years is 0.20. How many possible planets with life could have heard this signal?
Tutorial
A radio broadcast left Earth in 1923. How far in light
years has it traveled?
If there is, on average, 1 star system per 400 cubic light
years, how many star systems has this broadcast
reached?
Assume that the fraction of these star systems that
have planets is 0.50 and that, in a given planetary
system, the average number of planets that have
orbited in the habitable zone for 4 billion years is 0.40.
How many possible planets with life could have heard
this signal?
Part 1 of 3
To figure out how many light years a signal has
traveled we need to know how long since the signal left
Earth. If the signal left in 1923, distance in light years =
time since broadcast left Earth.
d = tnow - broadcast
d = 97
97 light years
Part 2 of 3
Since the radio signal travels in all directions, it
expanded as a sphere with a radius equal to the
distance it has traveled so far. To determine the
number of star systems this signal has reached, we
need to determine the volume of that sphere.
V, =
Vb…
Chapter 25 Solutions
Foundations of Astronomy (MindTap Course List)
Ch. 25 - Explain how astrobiology is a science and not a...Ch. 25 - Describe one special quality of water that makes...Ch. 25 - Mars and Europa are two Solar System bodies that...Ch. 25 - How does the DNA molecule produce a copy of...Ch. 25 - What would happen to a life-form if the genetic...Ch. 25 - What would happen to a life-form if the genetic...Ch. 25 - What would happen to a life-form if the...Ch. 25 - Describe an example of natural selection acting on...Ch. 25 - Prob. 9RQCh. 25 - What evidence do scientists have that life on...
Ch. 25 - Define organic, as in organic molecule. How is...Ch. 25 - Why is liquid water generally considered necessary...Ch. 25 - Some meteorites contain organic molecules. What...Ch. 25 - What is the difference between chemical evolution...Ch. 25 - Prob. 15RQCh. 25 - Why was Earths early atmosphere able to support...Ch. 25 - Molecules of which gas were needed in Earths...Ch. 25 - Does intelligence make a creature more likely to...Ch. 25 - Describe one hypothesis for how cells first...Ch. 25 - What is the evidence that the first organisms on...Ch. 25 - Name three locations in our Solar System to search...Ch. 25 - Why are upper-main-sequence (high-luminosity) host...Ch. 25 - Prob. 23RQCh. 25 - How does the stability of technological...Ch. 25 - Prob. 25RQCh. 25 - Prob. 26RQCh. 25 - Why are scientists confident Earth has never been...Ch. 25 - Why does the Drake equation implicitly assume the...Ch. 25 - A single human cell encloses about 1.5 m of DNA....Ch. 25 - If you represent Earths history by a line that is...Ch. 25 - Consider Figure 25-8. What is the ratio of the...Ch. 25 - Suppose a human generation is defined as the...Ch. 25 - If a star must remain on the main sequence for at...Ch. 25 - Prob. 6PCh. 25 - If you detected radio signals with an average...Ch. 25 - Prob. 8PCh. 25 - The first radio broadcast was made on January 13,...Ch. 25 - Prob. 10PCh. 25 - The DNA in a single cell in your body contains...Ch. 25 - Prob. 2SOPCh. 25 - Look at Figure 25-11. Since the time we sent the...Ch. 25 - The star cluster shown in this image contains a...Ch. 25 - If you could search for life in the galaxy shown...
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Need a deep-dive on the concept behind this application? Look no further. Learn more about this topic, physics and related others by exploring similar questions and additional content below.Similar questions
- If we do find life on Mars, what might be some ways to check whether it formed separately from Earth life, or whether exchanges of material between the two planets meant that the two forms of life have a common origin?arrow_forwardWhat are the three requirements that scientists believe an environment needs to supply life with in order to be considered habitable?arrow_forwardWhat is a habitable zone?arrow_forward
- Life on Earth exists because of oxygen in Earths atmosphere. True false? Explain your answer.arrow_forwardWhat is the difference between chemical evolution and biological evolution?arrow_forwardWhat are the advantages to using radio waves for communication between civilizations that live around different stars? List as many as you can.arrow_forward
- Tutorial A radio broadcast left Earth in 1925. How far in light years has it traveled? If there is, on average, 1 star system per 400 cubic light years, how many star systems has this broadcast reached? Assume that the fraction of these star systems that have planets is 0.30 and that, in a given planetary system, the average number of planets that have orbited in the habitable zone for 4 billion years is 0.85. How many possible planets with life could have heard this signal? Part 1 of 3 To figure out how many light years a signal has traveled we need to know how long since the signal left Earth. If the signal left in 1925, distance in light years = time since broadcast left Earth. d = tnow - tbroadcast d = light years Submit Skip (you cannot come back)arrow_forwardWhat is the best way to determine if a exoplanet has life inside it? Group of answer choices Detect the star the exoplanet is orbiting and compare it to the Sun. Detect the exoplanet and determine if it is in the habitable zone of the star. Detect the exoplanet and study the atmosphere of the exoplanet. Detect the exoplanet and determine its age to see if it is similar to the age of the Earth.arrow_forwardWhich of the following is least reasonable regarding the concept of a habitable zone? Group of answer choices M-type stars have wider habitable zones than G-type stars. It is a region around a star where liquid water could be found on a planet's surface. The habitable zone of a less massive star would be closer to the star. In the course of millions of years, our habitable zone will slowly shift from Earth to Mars. The Galactic habitable zone cannot be too close to the Galactic center because the radiation from the bright stars and supernovae in the crowded inner part of the Galaxy would probably be detrimental to life.arrow_forward
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