{"id":61331,"date":"2024-07-07T07:11:00","date_gmt":"2024-07-07T07:11:00","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/fc9375d1-d9c2-42e5-bf52-82f12c4e90d4"},"modified":"2024-07-07T07:39:43","modified_gmt":"2024-07-07T07:39:43","slug":"make-an-instrument-that-shows-how-astronomers-measure-vast-distances-in-space","status":"publish","type":"rss_feed","link":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/bbcskyatnight\/rss_feed\/make-an-instrument-that-shows-how-astronomers-measure-vast-distances-in-space\/","title":{"rendered":"Make an instrument that shows how astronomers measure vast distances in space"},"content":{"rendered":"

How to make an instrument that demonstrates how cosmic distances are measured. <\/p>

By <\/p>

Published: Sunday, 07 July 2024 at 07:11 AM<\/p>

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Hold up a finger and look at it with just one eye, then switch to just the other and you’ll see your finger appear to \u2018jump\u2019 from side to side.<\/p>

The further away the finger, the smaller the jump.<\/p>

This apparent shift of a nearby object against a distant background when observed from different positions is called parallax.<\/p>

Measuring the size of this ‘jump’ as an angle is the same technique astronomers traditionally used to find the distances to celestial objects such as stars<\/a>.<\/p>

Our DIY project is an instrument to demonstrate the principle, and is known as a parallax measuring tool.<\/p>

Extra materials to help with the build<\/strong><\/h2>

Download our Parallax Distance Calculator (Excel)<\/a><\/em><\/strong><\/p>

Download our Parallax Calculator Diagram (PDF)<\/a><\/em><\/strong><\/p>

Materials<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div><\/div>
\"Parallax
Drilling the blocks<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div><\/div>
\"Parallax
Wooden parts<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div><\/div>
\"Parallax
Gluing on blocks<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div><\/div>
\"Parallax
Attaching tripod nut<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div><\/div>
\"Parallax
End A<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div><\/div>
\"Parallax
End B<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div><\/div>
\"Parallax
View from A<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div><\/div>
\"Parallax
View from B<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div><\/div><\/div>