Download Barycenter Our solar system consists of the Sun and the

Barycenter
Environmental Science
Name: _________________________________________ Period: ________ Date: _______________
Essential Question: How is the barycenter affected by the mass of the object?
Instructions: Read the selection and answer the questions.
Our solar system consists of the Sun and the many millions of celestial bodies, including
large planets and microscopic dust particles, which orbit around it. As a unit, the solar system has
a center of mass, its balancing point. At this point, the system would balance like a spinning plate
atop a circus performer's balancing stick. This point, called the barycenter, is the exact point
about which all the bodies in the solar system orbit. Since the Sun is vastly larger and heavier
than all the other bodies combined, the solar system's barycenter is very close to the Sun—but
not at the Sun's center. Thus, while all the other solar system bodies seem to orbit the Sun, they,
including the Sun, are actually orbiting a point in space just beyond the Sun's outer layer.
Did You Know that the Moon Doesn’t Orbit the Earth?
Orbit means to move in a curved path around another something. In astronomy, celestial
bodies are generally described as moving or orbiting some other celestial body. For example, the
Moon is said to orbit or revolve around the Earth. The Earth doesn’t stays in position as the
Moon circles it.
Just like the planets orbiting the Sun,
moons orbiting planets also comprise a system
with a center of mass. For the Earth-Moon
system, the barycenter is located 1,710 km
below the surface of the Earth. This is because
the Earth is far more massive than the Moon
and it is this common center of mass around
which the Earth and the Moon seem to go
around. The International Astronomical Union
(IAU) does not consider the Earth-Moon
system as a double-planet system, since the
center of mass does not lie between them but
rather within the Earth.
A Method to Locate Planets
Astronomers are using the concept of the barycenter to locate new planets around stars outside
our Solar System. The way this is done is that since a planet and its star orbit a common center
and due to the star being more massive, the center of mass is located within the star itself. This
actually causes the star to "wobble" in its path and it is this tell-tale signature of wobbling of stars
that tells astronomers that a planet is causing the effect. Many extrasolar planets have been
located around various stars in our own galaxy making the barycentric approach a useful and
practical means of planet hunting.
http://www.brighthub.com/science/space/articles/117934.aspx#
http://www.wisegeek.com/what-is-a-barycenter.htm
http://www.education.com/science-fair/article/barycenter-balancing-point/
R.Angat
Did you read the selection on the first page? If YES! You can answer these questions.
1. What is our solar system made of?
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2. What is the barycenter?
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3. Where is the barycenter of the solar system?
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4. Why is the barycenter of the solar system either inside or very close to the Sun?
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5. Does the moon orbit around earth? Explain.
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6. Does the earth stay in position as the moon revolves around it? Read the whole selection first and then
explain your answer.
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7. Where is the barycenter of the earth and the moon?
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8. Why is the barycenter of the earth and the moon found below the surface of earth? ( 1,710 km or
1062.54 miles below the surface of earth)
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9. What does IAU stands for?
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10. Why is the Earth-Moon System not considered as double planet system?
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11. How do astronomers use the concept of barycenter to locate new planets around stars outside our
Solar system?
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12. What do wobbling stars tell astronomers?
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R.Angat