Astronomy 1021 Lecture Notes - Celestial Equator, Angular Diameter, Google Earth
Document Summary
Patterns & motions in the sky: reasons for seasons. Question 4: answer b/c? (correct answer is d, at next question) The local sky : section of the sky you"re seeing from where you are. Always different dependent upon your location: animation on mastering astronomy, horizon = altitude (0 degrees). Boundary between earth and sky: meridian = in between horizon and zenith, zenith = altitude 90 degrees). In ancient times, constellations were only the brightest starts, named after mythological gods: all sorts of objects (sun, moon, planets, comets), are moving and thus move through constellations. The stars may be located at very different distances from us. We have no depth perception: since we lack depth perception, all stars seem to be of equal distance, as if they are glued onto a great sphere that surrounds earth. In ancient times, the celestial sphere was the view of the universe: stars attached to this sphere.