The Essential Cosmic Perspective (8th Edition)

For one-semester courses in astronomy. A practical introduction to Astronomy with an emphasis on critical thinking about our place in the universe This 8th Edition of Essential Cosmic Perspective provides readers without science backgrounds with a streamlined, cutting-edge introduction to astronomy. Built on a strong tradition of effective pedagogy and coverage, the text focuses on skill-building and includes group work exercises that require active participation. Dedicated to bringing an understanding of the universe, its scientific basis and its relevance to our lives, each chapter is written to specific learning goals that build an ideal learning path for readers. Aiming to foster a lifelong learning experience, the authors focus on key concepts, providing big picture context, promoting conceptual understanding, and preferring plain language to jargon. The 8th Edition incorporates the latest scientific updates in the field of astronomy and includes new features that reinforce critical thinking and excite readers'curiosity. New features such as Extraordinary Claims engage readers by presenting extraordinary claims about the universe and how they were either supported or debunked as scientists collected more evidence, reinforcing the process of science and how scientists think critically to evaluate them. My Cosmic Perspective establishes a personal connection between readers and the cosmos as they learn to think critically about the meaning of what they learn in their astronomy studies and beyond. Designed and written for a one semester course, this text shares many of the strengths of its more comprehensive best-selling sibling, The Cosmic Perspective. Also available with Mastering Astronomy Mastering TM Astronomy is the leading online homework, tutorial, and assessment system, designed to improve results by engaging students with vetted, interactive content. Instructors ensure students arrive ready to learn by assigning new Interactive Prelecture videos that give students exposure to key concepts before class and open classroom time for active learning or deeper discussions of topics. With Learning CatalyticsTM instructors can expand on key concepts and encourage student engagement during lecture through questions answered individually or in pairs and groups. Students further master concepts through book-specific Mastering Astronomy assignments, which provide hints and answer-specific feedback that build problem-solving skills. Mastering Astronomy now features Virtual Astronomy Labs, providing assignable online laboratory activities that use Stellarium and Interactive Figures. Note: You are purchasing a standalone product; Mastering TM Astronomy does not come packaged with this content. Students, if interested in purchasing this title with Mastering Astronomy, ask your instructor for the correct package ISBN and Course ID. Instructors, contact your Pearson representative for more information. If you would like to purchase both the physical text and Mastering Astronomy, search for: 0134516338 / 9780134516332 Essential Cosmic Perspective Plus Mastering Astronomy with eText, The -- Access Card Package Package consists of: 0134509293 / 9780134509297 Mastering Astr Cover......Page 1 Title Page......Page 2 Copyright Page......Page 3 Dedication......Page 4 Brief Contents......Page 5 Contents......Page 6 Preface......Page 10 About the Authors......Page 19 How to Succeed......Page 21 Foreword......Page 23 Learning Goals......Page 26 1.1. The Scale of the Universe......Page 27 1.2. The History of the Universe......Page 35 1.3. Spaceship Earth......Page 40 Exercises and Problems......Page 46 Cosmic Calculations 1.1: How Far Is a Light-Year?......Page 29 Basic Astronomical Definitions......Page 30 Common Misconceptions: The Meaning of a Light-Year......Page 31 Special Topic: How Many Planets Are in Our Solar System?......Page 32 Common Misconceptions: Confusing Very Different Things......Page 33 Cosmic Context: Figure 1.9 Our Cosmic Origins......Page 37 Learning Goals......Page 49 2.1. Patterns in the Night Sky......Page 50 2.2. The Reason for Seasons......Page 57 Common Misconceptions: Sun Signs......Page 64 2.4. The Ancient Mystery of the Planets......Page 71 Exercises and Problems......Page 75 Common Misconceptions: The Moon Illusion......Page 53 Cosmic Calculations 2.1: Angular Size, Physical Size, and Distance......Page 54 Common Misconceptions: Stars in the Daytime......Page 55 Common Misconceptions: What Makes the North Star Special?......Page 56 Special Topic: How Long Is a Day?......Page 58 Cosmic Context: Figure 2.15 The Seasons......Page 59 Common Misconceptions: High Noon......Page 62 Common Misconceptions: Shadows and the Moon......Page 65 Common Misconceptions: Moon in the Daytime......Page 66 Common Misconceptions: The “Dark Side” of the Moon......Page 67 Learning Goals......Page 78 3.1. The Ancient Roots of Science......Page 79 3.2. Ancient Greek Science......Page 83 Common Misconceptions: Columbus and a Flat Earth......Page 86 Extraordinary Claims: Earth Orbits the Sun......Page 93 Exercises and Problems......Page 102 Cosmic Calculations 3.1: Eratosthenes Measures Earth......Page 84 Cosmic Calculations 3.2: Kepler’s Third Law......Page 90 Cosmic Context: Figure 3.22 The Copernican Revolution......Page 95 Common Misconceptions: Eggs on the Equinox......Page 97 Special Topic: Astrology......Page 98 Cosmic Context: Part I At a Glance: Our Expanding Perspective......Page 105 Learning Goals......Page 107 4.1. Describing Motion: Examples from Daily Life......Page 108 4.2. Newton’s Laws of Motion......Page 112 Common Misconceptions: What Makes a Rocket Launch?......Page 115 4.4. The Force of Gravity......Page 120 Exercises and Problems......Page 127 Common Misconceptions: No Gravity in Space?......Page 111 Cosmic Calculations 4.1: Newton’s Version of Kepler’s Third Law......Page 121 Common Misconceptions: The Origin of Tides......Page 123 Special Topic: Why Does the Moon Always Show the Same Face to Earth?......Page 124 Learning Goals......Page 130 5.1. Basic Properties of Light and Matter......Page 131 5.2. Learning from Light......Page 137 5.3. Collecting Light with Telescopes......Page 144 Exercises and Problems......Page 156 Common Misconceptions: Can You Hear Radio Waves or See an X Ray?......Page 134 Common Misconceptions: The Illusion of Solidity......Page 136 Cosmic Calculations 5.1: Laws of Thermal Radiation......Page 142 Cosmic Calculations 5.2: The Doppler Shift......Page 143 Cosmic Context: Figure 5.16 Interpreting a Spectrum......Page 145 Extraordinary Claims: We Can Never Learn the Composition of Stars......Page 147 Common Misconceptions: Magnification and Telescopes......Page 148 Special Topic: Would You Like Your Own Telescope?......Page 149 Common Misconceptions: Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star......Page 152 Common Misconceptions: Closer to the Stars?......Page 153 Cosmic Context: Part II At a Glance: The Universality of Physics......Page 159 Learning Goals......Page 161 6.1. A Brief Tour of the Solar System......Page 162 6.2. The Nebular Theory of Solar System Formation......Page 176 6.3. Explaining the Major Features of the Solar System......Page 179 6.4. The Age of the Solar System......Page 188 Exercises and Problems......Page 193 Cosmic Context: Figure 6.1 The Solar System......Page 163 Common Misconceptions: Solar Gravity and the Density of Planets......Page 183 Extraordinary Claims: A Giant Impact Made by Our Moon......Page 187 Cosmic Calculations 6.1: Radiometric Dating......Page 191 Learning Goals......Page 196 7.1. Earth as a Planet......Page 197 7.2. The Moon and Mercury: Geologically Dead......Page 208 7.3. Mars: A Victim of Planetary Freeze-Drying......Page 210 7.4. Venus: A Hothouse World......Page 219 7.5. Earth as a Living Planet......Page 223 Exercises and Problems......Page 236 Common Misconceptions: Earth Is Not Full of Molten Lava......Page 198 Special Topic: Seismic Waves......Page 200 Cosmic Calculations 7.1: The Surface Area–to–Volume Ratio......Page 201 Common Misconceptions: Why Is the Sky Blue?......Page 206 Extraordinary Claims: Martians!......Page 211 Common Misconceptions: The Greenhouse Effect Is Bad......Page 227 Extraordinary Claims: Human Activity Can Change the Climate......Page 230 Cosmic Context: Figure 7.49 Global Warming......Page 231 Learning Goals......Page 239 8.1. A Different Kind of Planet......Page 240 8.2. A Wealth of Worlds: Satellites of Ice and Rock......Page 247 8.3. Jovian Planet Rings......Page 257 Exercises and Problems......Page 262 Learning Goals......Page 265 9.1. Classifying Small Bodies......Page 266 9.2. Asteroids......Page 269 Common Misconceptions: Dodge Those Asteroids!......Page 273 9.4. Pluto and the Kuiper Belt......Page 277 9.5. Cosmic Collisions: Small Bodies Versus the Planets......Page 281 Exercises and Problems......Page 287 Extraordinary Claims: The Death of the Dinosaurs Was Catastrophic, Not Gradual......Page 283 Learning Goals......Page 290 10.1. Detecting Planets Around Other Stars......Page 291 10.2. The Nature of Planets Around Other Stars......Page 295 10.3. The Formation of Other Planetary Systems......Page 304 Exercises and Problems......Page 309 Cosmic Context: Figure 10.6 Detecting Extrasolar Planets......Page 297 Cosmic Calculations 10.1: Finding Sizes of Extrasolar Planets......Page 300 Cosmic Context: Part III At a Glance: Learning from Other Worlds......Page 311 Learning Goals......Page 313 11.1. A Closer Look at the Sun......Page 314 11.2. Nuclear Fusion in the Sun......Page 318 11.3. The Sun–Earth Connection......Page 323 Exercises and Problems......Page 331 Common Misconceptions: The Sun Is Not on Fire......Page 317 Cosmic Calculations 11.1: The Ideal Gas Law......Page 319 Learning Goals......Page 334 12.1. Properties of Stars......Page 335 12.2. Patterns Among Stars......Page 343 12.3. Star Clusters......Page 351 Exercises and Problems......Page 355 Cosmic Calculations 12.1: The Inverse Square Law for Light......Page 337 Common Misconceptions: Photos of Stars......Page 339 Cosmic Calculations 12.2: Radius of a Star......Page 344 Cosmic Context: Figure 12.10 Reading an H-R Diagram......Page 345 Learning Goals......Page 358 13.1. Star Birth......Page 359 13.2. Life as a Low-Mass Star......Page 365 13.3. Life as a High-Mass Star......Page 372 13.4. Stars in Close Binaries......Page 378 Exercises and Problems......Page 383 Cosmic Calculations 13.1: Conditions for Star Birth......Page 361 Special Topic: How Long Is 5 Billion Years?......Page 371 Cosmic Context: Figure 13.23 Summary of Stellar Lives......Page 379 Learning Goals......Page 386 14.1. White Dwarfs......Page 387 14.2. Neutron Stars......Page 392 14.3. Black Holes: Gravity’s Ultimate Victory......Page 396 14.4. Extreme Events......Page 402 Exercises and Problems......Page 406 Special Topic: Relativity and the Cosmic Speed Limit......Page 389 Special Topic: General Relativity and Curvature of Spacetime......Page 398 Cosmic Calculations 14.1: The Schwarzschild Radius......Page 399 Common Misconceptions: Black Holes Don’t Suck......Page 400 Extraordinary Claims: Neutron Stars and Black Holes Are Real......Page 401 Cosmic Context: Part IV At a Glance : Balancing Pressure and Gravity......Page 409 Learning Goals......Page 411 15.1. The Milky Way Revealed......Page 412 Cosmic Calculations 15.1: The Orbital Velocity Formula......Page 416 15.3. The History of the Milky Way......Page 426 15.4. The Galactic Center......Page 428 Exercises and Problems......Page 434 Special Topic: How Did We Learn the Structure of the Milky Way?......Page 413 Special Topic: How Do We Determine Stellar Orbits?......Page 415 Common Misconceptions: The Sound of Space......Page 420 Common Misconceptions: What Is a Nebula?......Page 424 Cosmic Context: Figure 15.20 The Galactic Center......Page 429 Learning Goals......Page 436 16.1. Islands of Stars......Page 437 16.2. Distances of Galaxies......Page 442 Common Misconceptions: Beyond the Horizon......Page 451 16.4. The Role of Supermassive Black Holes......Page 457 Exercises and Problems......Page 464 Cosmic Calculations 16.1: Standard Candles......Page 443 Special Topic: Who Discovered the Expanding Universe?......Page 446 Cosmic Calculations 16.2: Hubble’s Law......Page 447 Common Misconceptions: What Is the Universe Expanding Into?......Page 449 Learning Goals......Page 467 17.1. The Big Bang Theory......Page 468 17.2. Evidence for the Big Bang......Page 477 17.3. The Big Bang and Inflation......Page 481 17.4. Observing the Big Bang for Yourself......Page 484 Exercises and Problems......Page 488 Cosmic Context: Figure 17.6 The Early Universe......Page 475 Cosmic Calculations 17.1: Temperature of Background Radiation......Page 479 Extraordinary Claims: The Universe Doesn’t Change with Time......Page 480 Learning Goals......Page 491 18.1. Unseen Influences in the Cosmos......Page 492 18.2. Evidence for Dark Matter......Page 493 18.3. Structure Formation......Page 502 18.4. Dark Energy and the Fate of the Universe......Page 505 Exercises and Problems......Page 516 Cosmic Calculations 18.1: Mass-to-Light Ratio......Page 496 Extraordinary Claims: Most of the Universe’s Matter Is Dark......Page 497 Special Topic: Einstein’s Greatest Blunder......Page 509 Cosmic Context: Figure 18.18 Dark Matter and Dark Energy......Page 511 Cosmic Context: Part V At a Glance : Galaxy Evolution......Page 519 Learning Goals......Page 521 19.1. Life on Earth......Page 522 19.2. Life in the Solar System......Page 532 19.3. Life Around Other Stars......Page 536 19.4. The Search for Extraterrestrial Intelligence......Page 542 19.5. Interstellar Travel and Its Implications for Civilization......Page 548 Exercises and Problems......Page 554 Special Topic: What Is Life?......Page 527 Extraordinary Claims: Aliens Are Visiting Earth in UFOs......Page 547 Cosmic Context: Part VI At a Glance: A Universe of Life?......Page 557 A. Useful Numbers......Page 559 B. Useful Formulas......Page 560 C. A Few Mathematical Skills......Page 561 D. The Periodic Table of the Elements......Page 566 E. Planetary Data......Page 567 F. Stellar Data......Page 570 G. Galaxy Data......Page 572 H. The 88 Constellations......Page 575 I. Star Charts......Page 577 J. Key to Icons on Figures......Page 582 Glossary......Page 583 Credits......Page 597 Index......Page 599 Space Insert......Page 610 Time Insert......Page 611