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The parallax method is a way of measuring distances of far-away objects. Astronomers use parallax to measure the distance to stars.
Parallax is a measurement of the shift of a nearby object compared to distant objects when observed from two different positions.
You can see this effect for yourself. Cover your right eye and look directly at something some distance away, like a tree or house. Hold your hand at arms' length and stick up one finger, and cover the tree with your finger.
Now uncover your right eye and cover the left eye, WITHOUT moving your hand. Your finger is no longer covering the tree. The "parallax shift", the distance that your finger appeared to move (relative to the tree in the background) can be used to measure how far away things are.
For nearby objects in the solar system - for example, a comet or an asteroid - two observatories can observe the same object at the same time, and measure the "parallax angle" between the comet and a distant star. Knowing how far apart the two observatories are will let you calculate the distance to the comet.
For other "nearby" stars, we assume that the stars themselves aren't moving quickly. Take one measurement today, and another measurement exactly six months later. We know the distance between the two observations is 184 million miles (twice the Earth's orbital radius). If our reference star is far enough away, we can use the parallax angle to calculate the nearby star's distance.
For VERY distant objects, this doesn't work, for two reasons.
1. The parallax angle is too tiny to be measured accurately
2. We cannot be sure that the reference star in the background is far enough away from the "nearby" star to accurately calculate the distance.
What else can I help you with?
What is the apparent shift in measurement is called?
parallax
What does par in parsec means?
parallax[parallax+second], in astronomy, basic unit of length for measuring interstellar and intergalactic distances, equal to 206,265 times the distance from the earth to the sun, 3.26 light-years, or 3.08×1013 km (about 19 million million mi). The distance in parsecs of an object from the earth is the reciprocal of the http://www.answers.com/topic/parallax of the object. The nearest star, Proxima Centauri, has a parallax of 0.763″ of arc and a distance of about 1.31 parsecs.definition from Answers.com
What is pallarax?
I believe that it is a look for side by side view. A parallax view is a parallel look _ _
Three units used to measure distance to stars?
The nearer stars are measured by triangulation using the radius of the Earth's orbit as the basic yardstick. Friedrich Bessel discovered parallax in 1838, the slight movement of a star against the background of more distant stars caused when the Earth orbits around the Sun. He picked out a star that he suspected was close, called 61 Cygni, and found that it was at a distance of ten light-years. This method is used for stars out to about 200-300 light years.
Describe the steps in using the method of spectroscopic parallax?
D = 10(m-M+5) / 5 So say star 1 has an apparent magnitude (m) of 5.03 and an absolute magmatude (M) of 4.0. Then: D = 10(5.03 - 4.0 + 5) / 5 = 106.03/5 = 101.21 = 16.22 parsecs.
What can parallax be used to determine about a star?
Parallax is a method used to find the distances of stars.
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.
Method to measure the distance to nearby stars directly?
For nearby stars, the parallax method gives the most accurate measure of distances.For nearby stars, the parallax method gives the most accurate measure of distances.For nearby stars, the parallax method gives the most accurate measure of distances.For nearby stars, the parallax method gives the most accurate measure of distances.
What is the most reliable method that astronomers use to estimate the distance to a galaxy?
The Parallax Method. See the link for more info.
The method used to figure out the distance from Earth to a star is the?
Parallax. See related question.
The method astronomers use to measure the distance to stars that are less than 1000 light years from earth?
The method called "parallax.
What method did the scientist demonstrate to calculate the distance of celestial bodies?
The scientist demonstrated the method of parallax to calculate the distance of celestial bodies.
How do astronomers measure distances to stars including the parallax method?
Astronomers use the parallax method to measure distances to stars by observing how a star's position shifts against distant background stars as Earth orbits around the Sun. By measuring the angle of this shift and knowing the baseline distance between Earth's orbit positions, astronomers can calculate a star's distance using trigonometry. The parallax method is most effective for nearby stars within a few hundred light-years from Earth.
Why does the parallax method of measuring star distances require observations of a star six months apart?
Because that is the entire idea of the parallax method - get measurements from two points, as far away as possible.It would be possible to do measurements a month apart, for example, or a week apart; but that would give a smaller parallax angle, and thus a larger error.Because that is the entire idea of the parallax method - get measurements from two points, as far away as possible.It would be possible to do measurements a month apart, for example, or a week apart; but that would give a smaller parallax angle, and thus a larger error.Because that is the entire idea of the parallax method - get measurements from two points, as far away as possible.It would be possible to do measurements a month apart, for example, or a week apart; but that would give a smaller parallax angle, and thus a larger error.Because that is the entire idea of the parallax method - get measurements from two points, as far away as possible.It would be possible to do measurements a month apart, for example, or a week apart; but that would give a smaller parallax angle, and thus a larger error.
Formula to calculate distance between planets?
The parallax method can be used to calculate the distance between planets and other celestial bodies. The formula for this is d(pc) = 1/p where p is parallax measured in arcseconds.
What method do astronomers use to determine the distance to a relatively close star like Sirius?
Astronomers use the method of parallax to determine the distance to relatively close stars like Sirius. By measuring the apparent shift in position of the star as the Earth moves around the Sun, astronomers can calculate the star's distance based on trigonometry.
What measures star distance from the Earth?
Stellar Parallax Astronomers estimate the distance of nearby objects in space by using a method called stellar parallax, or trigonometric parallax. Simply put, they measure a star's apparent movement against the background of more distant stars as Earth revolves around the sun.
