Indian National Astronomy Olympiad – 2019

Question Paper INAO – 2019

Roll Number: rorororo - rorororo - rorororo Date: 2nd February 2019

Duration: Three Hours Maximum Marks: 100

Please Note:

• Before starting, please ensure that you have received a copy of the question paper containing
a cover page and 4 pages of questions.

• Please write your roll number in the space provided above.

• There are total 7 questions. Maximum marks are indicated in front of each question /
sub-question.

• For all questions, the process involved in arriving at the solution is more important than
the final answer. Valid assumptions / approximations are perfectly acceptable. Please write
your method clearly, explicitly stating all reasoning / assumptions / approximations.

• Use of non-programmable scientific calculators is allowed.

• The answer-sheet must be returned to the invigilator. You can take this question
paper back with you.

• Please take note of following details about Orientation-Cum-Selection Camp (OCSC) in

Astronomy:

– Tentative Dates: 22nd April to 9th May 2019.

– This camp will be held at HBCSE, Mumbai.
– Attending the camp for the entire duration is mandatory for all participants.

Useful Constants

Mass of the Sun M ≈ 1.989 × 1030 kg

Mass of the Earth M⊕ ≈ 5.972 × 1024 kg
Mass of the Moon M$ ≈ 7.347 × 1022 kg
Radius of the Earth R⊕ ≈ 6.371 × 106 m
Speed of Light c ≈ 2.998 × 108 m s−1
Radius of the Sun R ≈ 6.955 × 108 m
Radius of the Moon Rm ≈ 1.737 × 106 m
Astronomical Unit a⊕ ≈ 1.496 × 1011 m
Solar Constant (at Earth) S ≈ 1366 W m−2
Gravitational Constant G ≈ 6.674 × 10−11 N m2 kg−2

HOMI BHABHA CENTRE FOR SCIENCE EDUCATION

Tata Institute of Fundamental Research
V. N. Purav Marg, Mankhurd, Mumbai, 400 088
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1. We can represent phases of the Moon diagramatically as follows:

It is known that there would be a new moon day on 28th February 2025. Sameer, who is writing
a science fiction story, visualised various hypothetical situations for the phases of Moon during
the month of March 2025. For each of the cases described below, draw the phases of Moon as
it will appear on 3rd March, 8th March, 11th March, 15th March, 20th March and 27th March.
High precision diagrams are not expected. Any approximate drawings (like the ones shown
above) will be accepted.
(a) (4 marks) First he thought that the lead character of his novel should be a resident of
the Moon and she can see the Earth in her sky. Draw phases of Earth as seen by her.
(b) (4 marks) As he did not find first case interesting enough, he brought his leading lady
back to the Earth. Next he assumed that the orbit of Moon around Earth is perpendicular
(inclination=90◦ ) to the orbit of Earth around the Sun (i.e. ecliptic plane) and the normal
to the orbit is always towards the Sun. Draw phases of the Moon in this case.
(c) (4 marks) Lastly, he assumed the orbit of the Moon is in the ecliptic plane (inclination=0◦ ),
but the shape of the Moon is cylindrical, with the diameter of the cylinder being equal
to its height. The axis of the cylinder is perpendicular to the ecliptic plane. For the
observer based on Earth, draw the phases of the Moon.

2. Below is a table of data indicating orbital radii and masses of solar system planets and some
dwarf planets. Assume all orbits to be circular around the centre of mass of the solar system
(C) and all objects to be in ecliptic plane.
Object Mass Orbital Object Mass Orbital
(kg) Radius (km) (kg) Radius (km)
23 7 26
Mercury 3.301 × 10 5.791 × 10 Saturn 5.683 × 10 1.427 × 109
24 8 25
Venus 4.867 × 10 1.082 × 10 Uranus 8.681 × 10 2.871 × 109
Earth 5.972 × 1024 1.496 × 108 Neptune 1.024 × 1026 4.498 × 109
Mars 6.417 × 1023 2.279 × 108 Pluto 1.309 × 1022 5.906 × 1010
20 8
Ceres 9.470 × 10 4.137 × 10 Eris 1.660 × 1022 1.018 × 1011
Jupiter 1.898 × 1027 7.783 × 108 – – –
(a) (3 marks) Either qualitatively describe or schematically draw what should be the con-
figuration of these bodies around the Sun such that,
(i) point C is as far as possible from the centre of the Sun (S).
(ii) points C and S are as close to each other as possible.
(b) (7 marks) Assuming all planets to be collinear, estimate the smallest possible distance
between points C and S.

3. Ameya has come up with an ambitious plan to set up a giant lens at an appropriate place
between the Earth and the Sun to reduce the flux of light falling on all points on the Earth.
(a) (2 marks) What type of lens should be used for this purpose?
(b) (2 marks) Where should we put the lens so that this reduction in intensity is permanent?

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(c) (3 marks) What should be the minimum diameter of this lens?

(d) (6 marks) Assuming that we want to reduce the temperature of the Earth by 2 ◦C, what
should be the focal length of this lens?
(e) (5 marks) In reality, it is impractical to make a single lens of such a diameter. So
Ameya’s plan B is to replace this single lens by an array (like a net with lens at every
node) of lenses of diameter 1 m and focal length 10 m. How many such lenses are required
to be placed at the same distance, in a circular area of same diameter as the bigger lens
to produce the same temperature change?
(f) (2 marks) If we want to replace the lenses in part (e) by opaque spheres of diameter 1 m,
what would be the corresponding drop in temperature?

4. (14 marks) Vinita prepared the two maps given below and gave those to students for practice
on a certain date. At that time, the sky looked like the skymap in your answersheet. Use
the practice maps to identify following constellations / stars in the skymap provided in your
answersheet.
Mark stars with circles around them and for constellations draw stick figures as shown in the
practice maps below.
Sagitta, Cor Caroli, Alberio, Lyra, Corvus, Corona Borealis

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5. The maps of the Earth which you typically find in textbooks are printed with following
criteria:

• All the latitudes and longitudes are straight lines.

• If any two points on the Earth along any longitude or along the equator have equal
angular separation then on the map they will have equal linear distance.

Prathyush has a globe of Earth of radius R. He also has a map of Earth with a projection
described above. He noticed that the length of equator in this map as well as on the globe
was exactly the same.
(a) (3 marks) Find the ratio of the total surface area of the map Amap to the area of the
globe Asph .
(b) (5 marks) Two small squares E and F of identical size are drawn on this map (see the
figure below). Square E lies very near to the equator, while square F lies at a latitude
AE|map AF |map AF |sph
of 60◦ . Find the ratios , and
AE|sph AF |sph AE|sph
where, AE|sph corresponds to area of E as measured on the globe
AE|map corresponds to area of E as measured on the map.
AF |sph corresponds to area of F as measured on the globe
AF |map corresponds to area of F as measured on the map.

(c) (2 marks) A large square is drawn on the map such that its sides are u units (u ∼ R/4).
Lower side of this square is located on the equator. Draw approximate shape of the
projection of this square as it appears on the globe.

6. (10 marks) Consider a cylindrical metallic wire of cross-sectional area A, length l, and resis-
tance R0 at ambient temperature T0 , which is also the temperature of the wire at the start of
experiment. The resistance of the wire varies as a function of temperature R = R0 eα(T −T0 ) .
Assume it acts like a perfect blackbody with an indefinitely high melting point. The wire
undergoes cooling only via radiation and its dimensions are unaffected by any change in tem-
perature. Sketch the approximate temperature vs. time graph if the ends of the wire are
maintained at a constant potential difference (V0 ).

7. Separated from his friends, Yash landed up on an island on 23rd September. On the same
day, with nothing better to do, he meticulously measured height of tide at every hour. This
data is tabulated in Table 1 below.
To model the tide height as a function of time, he made following simplifying assumptions;

• Tides are caused ONLY by the gravitational pull of the Moon (i.e. ignore gravitational
pull due to Sun).
• Ignore the effect of Earth’s rotation on the tides.

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Table 1: Data for height of tide at every hour (local time) on a 23rd September.

Time (hrs) Height (m) Time (hrs) Height (m) Time (hrs) Height (m)
00:00 0.538 08:00 0.45 16:00 0.756
01:00 0.616 09:00 0.341 17:00 0.812
02:00 0.708 10:00 0.307 18:00 0.786
03:00 0.753 11:00 0.33 19:00 0.733
04:00 0.786 12:00 0.372 20:00 0.666
05:00 0.741 13:00 0.482 21:00 0.622
06:00 0.639 14:00 0.572 22:00 0.583
07:00 0.554 15:00 0.676 23:00 0.545

• Ignore friction between the surface of the Earth and the water.
(a) (10 marks) Plot the given data.
(b) (4 marks) Using the plot, find the Sun-Earth-Moon angle.
(c) (2 marks) Find the date of the nearest New Moon.
(d) (6 marks) Later he explored interiors of the island, including a large cave system, and
had erratic eating and sleeping schedule. As a result, when he returned to the beach,
he had lost track of time. He again started measuring tide height to get a sense of date.
However, this time, he was also busy in other activities such as food gathering and raft
making. So his readings, as given in Table 2, are taken only sporadically. Find the height
of the tide at 16:00 hours on that day, by overplotting this data on the same graph paper.
(e) (2 marks) Which is the date corresponding to Table 2?

Table 2: Height versus time data

Time (hrs) Height (m) Time (hrs) Height (m)

00:00 1.014 12:00 0.748
01:00 1.079 13:00 0.855
02:00 1.033 14:00 0.844
03:00 0.905 18:00 0.279
07:00 0.255 19:00 0.213
08:00 0.235 20:00 0.203
09:00 0.322 21:00 0.307
10:00 0.445 23:00 0.682