USAAAO 2025, I кръг — Задача 21
USAAAO 2025 - First Round · 8 февруари 2025 г.
Внимание: Бележка към темата
All 30 separately numbered original first-round multiple-choice questions and their matching official explanations/answer letters are retained. The printed explanations for Questions 2 and 3 stop before a promised formula; Question 26 refers to a following triangle absent from its native solution page. No missing expression or diagram is reconstructed. Native scientific discrepancies and ambiguous formula notation remain literal and are explicitly attributed in local source notes. A separate two-page common USAAAO archive constants/reference table is included with its own source identity; it is undated in the catalogue, and its use as the exact 2025 attachment is not established. No separate dated instructions, answer sheet or constants companion is present in the 2025 archive folder. No point total or time limit is printed in these two exam booklets.
Original first-round date and writers
USAAAO 2025 - First Round
February 8th, 2025
Writers: Abhay Bestrapalli, Sidhant Chaliha, Ferdinand, Ved Gund, Hagan Hensley, Yehong Jiang, Alexander Li, Joe McCarty, Lucas Carrit Delgado Pinheiro, Sahil Pontula.
Common archive reference — Table of Physical Constants
This separate common USAAAO archive reference is undated in the catalogue. Its use as the exact 2025 exam attachment is not established.
| Quantity | Symbol | Value |
|---|---|---|
| Electron rest mass | ||
| Proton rest mass | ||
| Electronic charge | ||
| Speed of light in free space | ||
| Permeability of free space | ||
| Permittivity of free space | ||
| Planck’s constant | ||
| Reduced Planck’s constant | ||
| Boltzmann’s constant | ||
| Gas constant | ||
| Molar gas constant | ||
| Avogadro’s number | ||
| Standard molar volume | ||
| Unified atomic mass unit ( scale) | ||
| Mass of hydrogen atom | ||
| Bohr magneton | or | |
| Nuclear magneton | or | |
| Proton magnetic moment | ||
| Neutron magnetic moment | ||
| Bohr radius | ||
| Fine structure constant | ||
| Compton wavelength of electron | ||
| Rydberg’s constant | ||
| Stefan-Boltzmann constant | ||
| Radiation density constant | ||
| Gravitational constant |
Rest masses of some leptons and hadrons in :
0.5110, 105.66, 1777, 134.98, 139.57, 493.7, 497.7, 547, 1865, 1869, p 938.3, n 939.6, 1115.7, 1189, 1193, 1197, 1315, 1321, 1672, , .
| Quark | Charge | Mass () | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| u | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |||
| d | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |||
| c | 0 | 0 | +1 | 0 | 0 | ||
| s | 0 | -1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | ||
| t | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | +1 | 174.3 | |
| b | 0 | 0 | 0 | -1 | 0 | 4.2 |
Common archive reference — Astrophysical Data and identities
Astrophysical Data
| Quantity | Symbol | Value |
|---|---|---|
| 1 astronomical unit | AU | |
| 1 parsec | pc | |
| Luminosity of Sun | ||
| Mass of Sun | ||
| Radius of Sun | ||
| Mass of Earth | ||
| Radius of Earth |
Other data and conversion factors
| Quantity | Symbol | Value |
|---|---|---|
| 1 ångstrom | Å | |
| 1 fermi | fm | |
| 1 barn | b | |
| 1 pascal | Pa | |
| 1 standard atmosphere | ||
| Standard acceleration due to gravity | ||
| 1 electron volt | eV | |
| Wavelength of 1 eV photon |
Trigonometrical identities
In a triangle ABC,
and
Prefixes
| Prefix | Name | Factor |
|---|---|---|
| T | tera | |
| G | giga | |
| M | mega | |
| k | kilo | |
| c | centi | |
| m | milli | |
| micro | ||
| n | nano | |
| p | pico | |
| f | femto |
Source note: The common table prints and . The 2025 question14/key15 use 9.81 and key7 uses 6371 km; those original exam values are preserved separately.
Условие
What is the largest range of latitudes for which, at some time during the day, the line between Rigel (, ) and Betelgeuse (, ) appears vertical? Answer to within 5 degree accuracy.
(a)
(b)
(c)
(d)
(e)
Отговори
- E
Решение
The key to this problem is that Rigel and Betelgeuse define a great circle, and they appear vertical when the Zenith is on this great circle.
Rigel and Betelgeuse are very close to each other in the sky, so the region they occupy on the celestial sphere can be approximated to be flat. The slope that they make relative to the equator is approximately
The angle that their great circle makes with the celestial equator is this value. The Right Ascension of the intersection turns out not to matter.
Over the course of a day, the Zenith travels along the small circle a height above the equator, where is the latitude. The maximum latitude for which this is possible is , as seen in this figure.
Answer: E

Source note: The question prints αP for Betelgeuse while the solution uses αB. Both printed subscripts are retained.
Теми и трудност
Оценена трудност: 3/5.
Небесна сфера и сферична астрономия · Небесни координати · Денонощно движение и видимост
Предпоставки: Гимназиална подготовка, Разширена олимпиадна подготовка
Оригинал в Архива: exam_2025.pdf · официални решения: sol_2025.pdf · допълнителни данни: physical-constants.pdf