Astronomy 1 Homework Assignment 1

Astronomy 1
Fall 2008
Written Homework Assignment #1

Due Friday, October 3, 2008, at 3:30 p.m.

There are 100 homework points on this assignment.


INSTRUCTIONS: There are 10 questions on this assignment. All of the questions are from Freedman and Kaufmann, UNIVERSE, 8th edition.

When writing up your solutions on paper, be sure to follow the guidelines on the Astronomy 1 Homework Assignments page. In particular, be sure to SHOW YOUR WORK on all calculations.

You are to hand in your homework in the boxese at the back of the lecture hall. Make sure that your assignment goes in the correct box.


1. UNIVERSE, Chapter 1, Question 6, page 17.

2. UNIVERSE, Chapter 1, Question 22, page 17.

3. UNIVERSE, Chapter 1, Question 27, page 18.

4. A person with good vision can see details that subtend an angle as small as 1 arcminute. If two dark lines on an eye chart are 2 millimeters apart, how far can such a person be from the chart and still be able to tell that there are two distinct lines? Give your answer in meters. (Solution: 6.9 m)

5. UNIVERSE, Chapter 2, Question 27, page 40.

6. UNIVERSE, Chapter 2, Question 30, page 41.

7. UNIVERSE, Chapter 2, Question 35, page 41.

8. UNIVERSE, Chapter 3, Question 22, page 60.

9. UNIVERSE, Chapter 3, Question 31, page 61.

10. UNIVERSE, Chapter 3, Question 49, page 61.


Last updated 2008 September 26