INTRODUCTION:
For this Skylab we had to measure the change of the altitude angle of four separate constellations and Polaris. These measurements are used to measure the rise and fall of the stars due to the rotation of the Earth relative to them. These measurements help provide evidence of Polaris being a fixed star while other constellations and stars appear to rotate around it. The measurements were taken while using a protractor, straight edge, string and a weight to create homemade quadrant. That will help provide accurate measurements of the altitude angles of the stars. These measurements help distinguish the apparent motion of the stars, the motion as it appears in the sky due to the position of the observer on Earth. This observation led many to believe that a celestial sphere rotated around the Earth while the Earth remained stationary. Although present day it is common knowledge that the Earth
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These graphs resemble the data chart that was explained above. This way of representing the data also shows visually how Cassiopeia crosses its culmination and starts its decent towards the westward horizon.
SKYLAB QUESTIONS
1) Stars change elevation more than others because of their relative position to Polaris the further away the stars are from Polaris the larger their apparent circular motion giving the constellation a larger distance to travel as they travel through the night-sky. The way the Earth travels around the sun also effects this because as the Earth travels around the sun the stars in the background will change and their apparent position to Polaris will be different making some stars have to change altitude more than others.
2) (See attached notebook paper for sketch) Stars move counter