Download Star Wars

STAR WARS: Astronomy in Science Fiction
"The Force will be with you...always."
READ THIS FIRST:
NAME：＿＿＿＿＿＿
This is a make-up lab, worth 100 points. You don't have to complete this,
unless you have missed more than one lab or were not doing well in the
previous labs. This lab is very easy. Work independently and have fun.
The lab is based on the movie STAR WARS: A NEW HOPE (1977). Some of the
questions ask you about details in the movie, so you may want to watch the
movie to refresh your memory. All questions should be answered after careful
thinking of what you have learned in labs this semester.
A long time ago, in a galaxy far, far away...
Luke Skywalker leaves his home planet, teams up with other rebels, and tries
to save Princess Leia from the evil clutches of Darth Vader.
a) List 5 technological advances in the movie that we have yet to master. Make
your answers explicit so there is no doubt for me to understand the meaning.
b) R2D2 and C-3PO escape from the ship in an escape pod and crash-land
somewhere on a strange planet. How could they determine what latitude they
landed at?
c) Assuming the two "suns" of Tatooine have approximately the same luminosity,
then which of the following classifications for the stars (based on H-R
diagram) could be correct:
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i. White Dwarf and Red Giant
ii. White Dwarf and Main Sequence
iii. Both Main Sequence
Supergiant
iv. Both Red Giants
v. Red Dwarf and Red Giant
vi. Main Sequence and Red
Hint: What are the approximate temperature/color and luminosity of each type?
Remember red giants and red supergiants can be orange and yellow too.
d) How fast can Han's ship go? (Listen for the line "what a piece of junk"
from Luke when he first sees the ship) Is this speed possible? Han claims that
he has traveled across the galaxy and back and has never seen evidence of the
Force. Assuming the galaxy is similar in size to the Milky Way, is the trip
possible using his ship? (The diameter of Milky Way is about 100,000
lightyears). Just answer yes or no.
e) If light sabers emit light the same ways stars do("blackbody radiation"),
then whose saber has a higher temperature, Darth Vader's or Obi Wan's?
f) What do you notice about the rebel base that is a little unusual? (Hint:
What type of astronomical object is it located on?)
g) On all of the various inhabited celestial bodies in this movie, the sky
appears to be blue. This implies that all of their atmospheres are composed of
the same types of gases (oxygen, nitrogen...). Do you think most "human-like"
creatures would breathe the same type of air or is this an example of modeling
life in other systems based on our own limited experience?
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You need to turn this in BEFORE you leave. There is NO summary for this lab.
Good luck with finals and have a great break!
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