BAAO 2022, Теория — Задача 1. Sunrise in Oxford

British Astronomy and Astrophysics Olympiad 2021-2022 — Astronomy & Astrophysics Competition Paper · 24 януари 2022 г. · 30 т.

Указания

This question paper must not be photographed or taken out of the exam room

Time: 3 hours (∼50\sim 50 minutes for Q1, ∼65\sim 65 minutes for Q2 and ∼65\sim 65 minutes for Q3).

Questions: All three questions should be attempted. Each question contains independent parts so that later parts can be attempted even if earlier parts are incomplete.

Solutions: Answers and calculations are to be written on loose paper. Students should ensure their name and school is clearly written on the first answer sheet and that all pages are numbered. EACH QUESTION ANSWERED must be started on a new page. A standard formula booklet with standard physical constants may be used if desired.

Instructions: To accommodate students sitting the paper at different times, please do not discuss any aspect of the paper on the internet until 8 am Saturday 29th January.

Clarity: Solutions must be written legibly, in black pen, and working down the page. Scribble will not be marked and overall clarity is an important aspect of this exam.

Eligibility: The International Olympiad will be held in August 2022; all sixth form students are eligible to participate.

Calculators: Any standard calculator may be used, but calculators cannot be programmable and must not have symbolic algebra capability.

Training Dates and the IOAA

Training Dates and the IOAA (Kyiv, Ukraine, 12th - 22nd August 2022)

The team will be selected from students taking this paper. The best students that are eligible to represent the UK at the IOAA will be invited to attend the Training Camp to be held in Oxford from Saturday 9th to Wednesday 13th April 2022. Astronomy material will be covered; problem solving skills and observational skills (telescope and naked eye observations) will be developed. At the Training Camp a Data Analysis exam along with a Round 3 theory paper will be sat. A team of five students (plus one reserve) will be selected for further training, including additional training camps in the summer.

Important Constants
ConstantSymbolValue
Speed of lightcc3.00×108 m s−13.00 \times 10^{8}\ \mathrm{m\,s^{-1}}
Earth’s rotation period1 day24 hours
Earth’s orbital period1 year365.25 days
parsecpc3.09×1016 m3.09 \times 10^{16}\ \mathrm{m}
Astronomical Unitau1.50×1011 m1.50 \times 10^{11}\ \mathrm{m}
Radius of the SunR⊙R_{\odot}6.96×108 m6.96 \times 10^{8}\ \mathrm{m}
Radius of the EarthR⊕R_{\oplus}6.37×106 m6.37 \times 10^{6}\ \mathrm{m}
Mass of the SunM⊙M_{\odot}1.99×1030 kg1.99 \times 10^{30}\ \mathrm{kg}
Mass of the EarthM⊕M_{\oplus}5.97×1024 kg5.97 \times 10^{24}\ \mathrm{kg}
Luminosity of the SunL⊙L_{\odot}3.85×1026 W3.85 \times 10^{26}\ \mathrm{W}
Stephan-Boltzmann constantσ\sigma5.67×10−8 J m−2 K−45.67 \times 10^{-8}\ \mathrm{J\ m^{-2}\ K^{-4}}
Gravitational constantGG6.67×10−11 m3 kg−1 s−26.67 \times 10^{-11}\ \mathrm{m^{3}\ kg^{-1}\ s^{-2}}
Boltzmann constantkBk_{\mathrm{B}}1.38×10−23 J K−11.38 \times 10^{-23}\ \mathrm{J\ K^{-1}}
Permittivity of free spaceε0\varepsilon_08.85×10−12 F m−18.85 \times 10^{-12}\ \mathrm{F\ m^{-1}}
Permeability of free spaceμ0\mu_04π×10−7 H m−14\pi \times 10^{-7}\ \mathrm{H\ m^{-1}}
Planck’s constanthh6.63×10−34 J s6.63 \times 10^{-34}\ \mathrm{J\ s}
Elementary chargeee1.60×10−19 C1.60 \times 10^{-19}\ \mathrm{C}
Proton rest massmpm_{\mathrm{p}}1.67×10−27 kg1.67 \times 10^{-27}\ \mathrm{kg}
Electron rest massmem_{\mathrm{e}}9.11×10−31 kg9.11 \times 10^{-31}\ \mathrm{kg}
Wien’s displacement lawλmaxT\lambda_{\mathrm{max}}T2.90×10−3 m K2.90 \times 10^{-3}\ \mathrm{m\ K}
Avagadro’s constantNAN_A6.02×1023 mol−16.02 \times 10^{23}\ \mathrm{mol^{-1}}

Basic calculus formulae:

Chain ruleddxf(g(x))=f′(g(x))g′(x)\dfrac{\mathrm{d}}{\mathrm{d}x}f(g(x)) = f'(g(x))g'(x)
Product ruleddx(uv)=dudxv+udvdx\dfrac{\mathrm{d}}{\mathrm{d}x}(uv) = \dfrac{\mathrm{d}u}{\mathrm{d}x}v + u\dfrac{\mathrm{d}v}{\mathrm{d}x}
Quotient ruleddx(uv)=dudxv−udvdxv2\dfrac{\mathrm{d}}{\mathrm{d}x}\left(\dfrac{u}{v}\right) = \dfrac{\frac{\mathrm{d}u}{\mathrm{d}x}v - u\frac{\mathrm{d}v}{\mathrm{d}x}}{v^2}
Integration by parts∫udvdx dx=uv−∫vdudx dx\displaystyle\int u\frac{\mathrm{d}v}{\mathrm{d}x}\,\mathrm{d}x = uv - \int v\frac{\mathrm{d}u}{\mathrm{d}x}\,\mathrm{d}x
Standard integral∫1x dx=ln⁡∣x∣+C\displaystyle\int \frac{1}{x}\,\mathrm{d}x = \ln\vert x\vert + C
Important Formulae

You might find the diagram of an elliptical orbit below useful in solving some of the questions: (the diagram is attached to Qu 3 as a figure)

Elements of an elliptic orbit:

a=OA (=OP)a = \mathbf{OA}\ (= \mathbf{OP})semi-major axis
b=OB (=OC)b = \mathbf{OB}\ (= \mathbf{OC})semi-minor axis
e=1−b2a2e = \sqrt{1 - \frac{b^2}{a^2}}eccentricity
F\mathbf{F}focus
PF=a(1−e)\mathbf{PF} = a(1 - e)periapsis distance (shortest distance from F\mathbf{F})
AF=a(1+e)\mathbf{AF} = a(1 + e)apoapsis distance (longest distance from F\mathbf{F})

Kepler’s Third Law: For an elliptical orbit, the square of the period, TT, of an object about the focus is proportional to the cube of the semi-major axis, aa (as defined above), such that

T2=4π2GMa3 ,T^2 = \frac{4\pi^2}{GM}a^3\ ,

where MM is the total mass of the system (typically dominated by the central object) and GG is the universal gravitational constant.

Vis-Viva Equation: For an elliptical orbit, the speed vv of an object at a distance rr from the focus is related to the semi-major axis, aa, total mass of the system, MM, and universal gravitational constant, GG, (as defined above), such that

v2=GM(2r−1a) .v^2 = GM\left(\frac{2}{r} - \frac{1}{a}\right)\ .

Magnitudes: The apparent magnitudes of two objects, m1m_1 and m0m_0, are related to their apparent brightnesses, b1b_1 and b0b_0, via the formula

b1b0=10−0.4(m1−m0) .\frac{b_1}{b_0} = 10^{-0.4(m_1 - m_0)}\ .

The absolute magnitude of an object, M\mathcal{M}, is the same as its apparent magnitude when viewed from 10 pc, hence the relationship between apparent and absolute magnitude and distance is

m−M=5log⁡(d10) ,m - \mathcal{M} = 5\log\left(\frac{d}{10}\right)\ ,

where dd is measured in parsecs.

Note for markers

BAAO 2021/22 Solutions and Marking Guidelines

Note for markers:

  • Answers to two or three significant figures are generally acceptable. The solution may give more in order to make the calculation clear. Units should be present on final answers when appropriate.
  • There are multiple ways to solve some of the questions; please accept all good solutions that arrive at the correct answer. Students getting the answer in a box will get all the marks available for that calculation / part of the question (as indicated in red), so long as there are no unphysical / nonsensical steps or assumptions made (students may not explicitly calculate the intermediate stages and should not be penalised for this so long as their argument is clear).

Условие

It is often said that the Sun rises in the East and sets in the West, however this is only true twice a year - at the equinoxes. In the Northern hemisphere, the Sun will rise northwards of East on the June solstice, and southwards of East on the December solstice; this is directly tied in with the varying length of day too, since the Sun either has a greater or shorter distance to travel across the sky (see Figure 1).

Two diagrams of the Sun’s daily paths. Left: a celestial sphere with the horizon plane (N, E, S, W), the Zenith and Meridian, and three orange paths labelled June solstice, Equinox (March, September) and December solstice, separated by 23.5° each, with small Sun symbols. Right: a hemisphere seen from Iceland with the North Celestial Pole marked and three paths labelled June (red), Equinox (grey) and December (blue), with rising and setting points near N, E, W and S.
Figure 1: Left: The path of the Sun across the sky during the equinoxes and solstices, as viewed by an observer in the Northern hemisphere at a latitude of ∼40∘\sim 40^\circ. Credit: Daniel V. Schroeder / Weber State University. Right: The same idea but viewed from Iceland at a latitude of 65∘65^\circ, where by being so close to the Artic circle the day length can get close to 24 hours in June and almost no daylight in December. Credit: Kristín Bjarnadóttir / University of Iceland.

During the equinox, the Sun travels along the projection of the Earth’s equator. In this question, we will assume a circular orbit for the Earth, and all angles will be calculated in degrees.

A simple model for the vertical angle between the Sun and the horizon (known at the altitude), hh, as a function of the bearing on the horizon, AA (measured clockwise from North, also called the azimuth), the latitude of the observer, ϕ\phi (positive in Northern hemisphere, negative in Southern hemisphere), and the vertical angle of the Sun relative to the celestial equator (known as the solar declination), δ\delta, is given as:

h=−(90∘−ϕ)cos⁡(A)+δh = -(90^{\circ} - \phi)\cos(A) + \delta

The solar declination can be considered to vary sinusoidally over the year, going from a maximum of δ=+23.44∘\delta = +23.44^{\circ} at the June solstice (roughly 21st June) to a minimum of δ=−23.44∘\delta = -23.44^{\circ} on the December solstice (roughly 21st December).

a. (7 т.)

Consider an observer in Oxford (ϕ=+51.8∘\phi = +51.8^{\circ}) on the June solstice.

(i) Calculate the bearing of sunrise. Take the Sun to be a point source and ignore any atmospheric effects. [2 т.]

(ii) By calculating the angle the solar path makes with the horizon, η\eta, at sunrise for both the solstice and the equinox, estimate the duration of sunrise on the solstice if sunrise takes 3 mins 26 secs on the equinox. Assume the same solar angular velocity in both cases. [Hint: ddxcos⁡(αx)=−απ180sin⁡(αx)\dfrac{\mathrm{d}}{\mathrm{d}x}\cos(\alpha x) = -\alpha\dfrac{\pi}{180}\sin(\alpha x) if xx is in degrees (this will give an answer in degrees per degree, rather than degrees per radian as it would be without the π180\dfrac{\pi}{180} factor).] [5 т.]

It can be shown using spherical trigonometry that the precise model connecting δ\delta, hh, ϕ\phi and AA is:

sin⁡(δ)=sin⁡(h)sin⁡(ϕ)+cos⁡(h)cos⁡(ϕ)cos⁡(A) .\sin(\delta) = \sin(h)\sin(\phi) + \cos(h)\cos(\phi)\cos(A)\ .

b. (3 т.)

Considering just the bearing of sunrise, suggest (with qualitative justification only) which of the following situations the simple model will be the best approximation for the precise model:

A) a pole at solstice; B) a pole at equinox; C) the equator at solstice; or D) the equator at equinox.

Graph of solar elevation angle (° from horizon, 0 to 70) against solar azimuth angle (° from North, 0 to 360). Three arch-shaped curves centred on 180°: Summer solstice (red, peak about 57°, from about 45° to 315°), Equinoxes (black, peak about 34°, from 90° to 270°) and Winter solstice (blue, peak about 10°, from about 135° to 225°). Legend: Equinoxes, Winter solstice, Summer solstice.
Figure 2: The altitude of the Sun as a function of bearing during the equinoxes and solstices, as viewed by an observer at a latitude of +56∘+56^{\circ}. Whilst it resembles the cosine shape of the simple model well at this latitude, there are small deviations. Credit: Wikipedia.

Using the precise model, the path of the Sun across the sky forms a shape that is not quite the cosine shape of the simple model, and is shown in Figure 2.

By using further spherical trigonometry, we can derive a second helpful equation in the precise model:

sin⁡(h)=sin⁡(ϕ)sin⁡(δ)+cos⁡(ϕ)cos⁡(δ)cos⁡(H) .\sin(h) = \sin(\phi)\sin(\delta) + \cos(\phi)\cos(\delta)\cos(H)\ .

Here, HH is the solar hour angle, which measures the angle between the Sun and solar noon as measured along the projection of the Earth’s equator on the sky. Conventionally, H=0∘H = 0^{\circ} at solar noon, is negative before solar noon, and is positive afterwards. Since the sun’s hour angle increases at an approximately constant rate due to the rotation of the Earth, we can convert this angle into a time using the conversion 360∘=24h360^{\circ} = 24^{\mathrm{h}}.

c. (10 т.)

Reconsider the Oxford observer at the June solstice, but this time use the two equations of the precise model. Ignore any atmospheric effects.

(i) Calculate the bearing of sunrise and the duration of the day (in hours and minutes), taking the Sun to be a point source. [6 т.]

(ii) Calculate the duration of sunrise (in minutes and seconds), assuming a solar angular diameter of 0.525∘0.525^{\circ}. [4 т.]

d. (10 т.)

This exam is being taken on 24th January and is 3 hours long.

(i) Estimate the solar declination on this date. [3 т.]

(ii) Hence, calculate the latitude where today’s day length is equal to the exam length, taking the Sun to be a point source. [2 т.]

(iii) What is the latitude with the longest sunrise today? Give its duration in minutes and seconds. [5 т.]

Отговори

Решение

END OF PAPER

END OF PAPER

Questions proposed by:
Dr Alex Calverley (Royal Grammar School, Guildford)
Josh Brown (University of Cambridge)


Оригинал в Архива: BAAO_2022.pdf · официални решения: BAAO_2022_solutions.pdf