You are here:
Astronomy/astronomy
Advertisement
Question
What is the distance of a nearby star that has a parallax of 0.2 arc seconds?
Dear Gina,
The answer is that it's 5 parsecs away, (which is the same as saying that it's a little over 16 light years away), but AllExperts asks us to have students try to do their own homework. It's not too hard. You can do it! Try this webpage. The equations you need are mostly down near the bottom.
http://www.computing.edu.au/~bvk/astronomy/HET603/atlas/html/ve04.html
I hope this was helpful. Keep Looking Up!
--Ed
- Add to this Answer
- Ask a Question
Questioner's Rating
| Rating(1-10) | Knowledgeability = 10 | Clarity of Response = 10 | Politeness = 10 |
| Comment | Thanks for the website that you gave me. It really answered my questions and I also found out some extra information. | ||
Related Articles
Astronomy
Answers by Expert:
Ed
Expertise
I am not a professional astronomer by any means, but astronomy has been an interest of mine since childhood, and I am well-informed on the subject. If unable to answer someone`s question personally, I will know how to quickly find the answer online, because I keep myself informed about developments in the field and I know where to look for information.
Experience
I worked in an observatory for awhile at one point, doing various interesting things with a computer.
©2012 About.com, a part of The New York Times Company. All rights reserved.