Study Questions Week 12

Exoplanets

Describe the technique used to find extrasolar planets.

Describe the characteristics of the first extrasolar planets that were discovered.

Describe the general characteristics of the known exoplanets.

What is meant by the term "hot Jupiter"?

What are the characteristics that define the group of planets referred to as hot Jupiters?

What mechanisms are proposed for the formation of the hot jupiters?

What are the theories being proposed to explain the orbits of the extrasolar planets with very elliptical orbits?

How do the characteristics of the extrasolar planets conflict with the standard theory of formation of the solar system?

What technique is used to discover extrasolar planets? What information is actually measured?

What is a "brown dwarf"? What is the expected mass of a brown dwarf?

What is the range of masses (in terms of the mass of Jupiter) for the known exoplanets?

What is the range of orbital radii (in A.U.) of the known exoplanets?

What can you say about the orbital radii of the exoplanets with nearly circular orbits, compared to the exoplanets with elliptical orbits?

What are the typical masses of the stars in the known exoplanet systems? Why is this?

Describe the biases in the current search for exoplanets.

Systems of Time

Know the terms: local apparent time, local mean time, equation of time, zone time, mean Sun

What is the longitude correction? 

Why do we need the concept of the "mean Sun"? 

Is the Sun always on your meridian at noon? Explain. 

Be able to do the problems similar to the "Time Homework Problems".

Study questions from other weeks:

week 1 | week2 | week 3 | week 4 | week 5 | week 6 | week 7 | week 8 | week 9 | week 10 | week 11 | week 12 | week 13 | week 14