Question

A scientist wants to know the distance to a certain star. Explain how the principle of parallax can be used to help the scientist.

:)

Answer 1

Here's an example..
Star A is lined up w/ another distant star & viewed from a position on earth in the spring. The angle is determined. Star A is again lined up w/ another distant star in the autumn and the angle is determined again.

Because earth has revolved halfway around the sun in this 6 month period, it has travelled 2 astronomical units (AU). This distance is called the baseline.

Because the baseline and 2 angles are known, the method of triangulation can be used to calculate the distance of Star A.