Why is Einstein's general theory of relativity a better description of gravity than Newton's universal law of gravitation? Under what circumstances is Newton's description of gravity adequate?
What is a gamma-ray burster? What is the evidence that gamma-ray bursters are not located in the disk of our Galaxy or in a halo surrounding our Galaxy?
Why is it unlikely that a black hole has an electric charge?
The orbital period of the binary system containing A0620-00 is 0.32 day, and Doppler shift measurements reveal that the radial velocity of the X-ray source peaks at 457 km/s (about 1 million miles per hour). (a) Assuming that the orbit of the X-ray source is a circle, find the radius of its orbit in kilometers. (This is actually an estimate of the semimajor axis of the orbit.) (b) By using Newton's form of Kepler's third law, prove that the mass of the X-ray source must be at least 3.1 times the mass of the Sun. (Hint: Assume that the mass of the K5V visible star—about 0.5 solar mass from the mass-luminosity relationship—is negligible compared to that of the invisible companion.)
What must happen within a hydrogen atom for it to emit a photon of wavelength 21 cm?
What is the winding dilemma? What does it tell us about the nature of spiral arms?
Do density waves form a stationary pattern in a galaxy? If not, do they move more rapidly, less rapidly, or at the same speed as stars in the disk?