Reach for the Stars B

[foreverphysics]

*Snort* *cough cough* ahem.
Infinity...revise carefully next time, eh?
Also...

No, Infinity, I am not laughing at you.
I am merely finding humor in something else Cheesy Pie said.

[fishman100]

I just uploaded the test I wrote for the Camas Invitational to the test exchange.
It is in a powerpoint format - each slide has a set of questions about an object and a given time limit. The last side is intended to take 15-25 minutes and is a more "extended response" set of questions.
The high score for the Invitational today was 30/45 points, if I remember correctly.

Questions 4 and 5 have dwarf planet Eris as a star. FAILFAILFAIL there is obviously a satellite that is visible SHEESH you know how much I hate astronomical errors!

Huh? Questions 4 and 5 picture Sirius A and B...Eris wasn't even on the RftS DSO list.

Conduct a quick Google Image search, you might be surprised!

[rfscoach]

I just uploaded the test I wrote for the Camas Invitational to the test exchange.
It is in a powerpoint format - each slide has a set of questions about an object and a given time limit. The last side is intended to take 15-25 minutes and is a more "extended response" set of questions.
The high score for the Invitational today was 30/45 points, if I remember correctly.

Questions 4 and 5 have dwarf planet Eris as a star. FAILFAILFAIL there is obviously a satellite that is visible SHEESH you know how much I hate astronomical errors!

Huh? Questions 4 and 5 picture Sirius A and B...Eris wasn't even on the RftS DSO list.

Conduct a quick Google Image search, you might be surprised!

Yup. That is definitely a Sirius A and B x-ray image. In the image the bright star is Sirius B, the dim companion is Sirius A. If you don't know why, I suggest you study. FYI - This is a seriously image heavy event and you'll need to be able to ID the DSOs in ALL wavelengths.

[Cheesy Pie]

Sorry. Could have sworn I saw the same image of Eris and Dysnomia.

[Infinity Flat]

Sorry. Could have sworn I saw the same image of Eris and Dysnomia.

Probably this one. Most binary system photos look the same, though, so I wouldn't jump to any conclusions just based on a photo.

[SmalSci]

From what i've reaserched i've seen alot about star charts. What is it and where can I find one?
This is my first year in this event, what is a good place (other than here) to get study materials?

[AlphaTauri]

Star charts, you say? Well, you can find them online at sites like this or this, but personally I prefer to make my own with Stellarium (free stargazing software), mostly because I can set very specific dates and times.

As for event resources: First, I suggest taking a look at what the RftS wiki has to offer. I wrote a decent portion of it, so I can vouch for the accuracy of the information there. After that...you do have a computer with internet access right? Anything you could possibly want or need to know about for this event is somewhere out there. (College astro courses are pretty good for non-DSO info, though they can get a little too in depth at times.)

Good luck! :)

[Cheesy Pie]

If anyone wishes to know, this is a simple life cycle of a star.

Pre-main-sequence/main sequence
Formation in a nebula: gas in a Bok globule condenses into a spinning ball of condensed gas.
Protostar stage: A battle between gravity and outward pressure. Gravity wins early, but is equalized. Outwards pressure wins later on.
Main sequence: Star is in hydrostatic equilibrium, or when outwards pressure is equal to gravity. There is a relationship between temperature, mass, and luminosity: as mass increases, temperature increases, and luminosity increases.
Post-main-sequence (ie after hydrogen fuel used up)
Stars <1/2 solar mass: Cool and condense into black dwarf (many billions, even trillions of years after formation)
Stars 1/2 to 8 solar masses: Starts fusing helium. Expands into red giant. After helium used up, star's outer layers shed, revealing white dwarf.
Stars 8 to app. 30 solar masses: Fuses helium. Becomes red supergiant. After helium used up, fuses some oxygen and neon. Explodes as supernova. Remains are neutron stars or pulsars - quickly rotating neutron stars. These are 1.4 to 3.2 solar masses.
Stars 30+ solar masses: Starts fusing helium. Turns into red supergiant or hypergiant. Fuses elements until iron is created in core. When iron appears, star goes supernova or hypernova. Remnants are black holes of 3.2+ solar masses.

Tell me if I need anything.

[sciencegeek999]

I think that we have to identify constellations in the night sky. At my school, my coach made me the Reach for the Stars leader.
I've had some questions about how to identify them. From past experience, can you please tell me how kids do that? How are you supposed to find the constellations when they are so many other stars there? Please advise, thanks.

[Infinity Flat]

I think that we have to identify constellations in the night sky. At my school, my coach made me the Reach for the Stars leader.
I've had some questions about how to identify them. From past experience, can you please tell me how kids do that? How are you supposed to find the constellations when they are so many other stars there? Please advise, thanks.

Some constellations are much easier to identify than others. For example, Ursa Major (The Big Dipper) and Cygnus (The Northern Cross). Usually, you can use the more obvious constellations to guide you to the more subtle ones.

For example, to find Arcturus, in the constellation Bootes, you can follow the arc made by the Big Dipper's handle. (LINK)

You are allowed a page of notes, so something important to include is a star chart that shows an image of each constellation and its relative location to the others.