COINTEST: Raiders of the Lost Cache Geocoin

[+tsunrisebey]

This is what you are playing for (due out in May, non-trackable, personal coin).

 

This contest is going to be tough. This will require research, so take your time and make sure you read my question and what I'm looking for. The subject matter is ASTRONOMY

 

Question being posted at 8:00 pm MST

[+J10fly]

Nuts, I'll be asleep by then! LOL

Good luck to all!

 

Jayman11

[+ScoutingWV]

Got my Googles and Internets ready!

[+TheCollector]

Google up and ready to go

[+Markle]

While still very new to these forums I just want to add some two cents here...

 

I vote us dial-up users should get a handicap.

 

I kid, I kid

-M

[+TheCollector]

While still very new to these forums I just want to add some two cents here...

 

I vote us dial-up users should get a handicap.

 

I kid, I kid

-M

 

Thank God for T3

Edited April 13, 2007 by TheCollector

[+ArtieD]

While still very new to these forums I just want to add some two cents here...

 

I vote us dial-up users should get a handicap.

 

I kid, I kid

-M

 

Thank God for T3

 

Thank God for T4

[+Markle]

Lucky!.. Gah

[+ScoutingWV]

T3?? My dinky little broadband don't stand a chance!

[+tsunrisebey]

RULES:

**NO EDITING POSTS.

 

**If you want to guess again, you are more than welcome to answer as many times as needed until you are either comfortable with your answer or someone wins.

 

**I have final say on the winner.

 

In our galaxy, the Milky Way, based on optical, infrared, and radio studies, there are very different spatial distributions of galactic disks, galactic bulges, and galactic halo components.

 

What are the overall properties of each one ( I will accept 4 properties for each, although there are more)? I can hear the groaning.............lol. I had to learn it

 

1. Galactic disks

2. Galactic Halo

3. Galactic Bulge

[+Markle]

56 K... That's all I have to say.

 

At least it's not 2400 baud.

[+ScoutingWV]

Galactic Disk:

The flattened component of a spiral galaxy in which, together with many ordinary stars such as the Sun (see disk star), lie the biggest and brightest of stars – the O stars and B stars. The disk is also home to large tracts of interstellar material from which new stars are continually being made.

 

Galatic halo:

A large, relatively dust-free, spherical region surrounding a spiral galaxy, such as our own. The inner, visible part of the halo, which has roughly the same diameter as the galactic disk, is occupied by Population II objects, including globular clusters and old, individual stars. Beyond this is a much larger region, called the dark halo or extended halo, containing large amounts of dark matter, the presence of which is revealed by its gravitational effect on the galaxy's rotation. The nature of galactic dark matter is still undetermined but the most popular theory, supported by some recent observations, is that the dark halo is home to vast numbers of small, unseen bodies known as MACHOs.

 

Galactic bulge:

The spheroidal mass of stars that forms the central hub of spiral and lenticular galaxies – the yoke, if such galaxies are imagined to resemble fried eggs. The bulge diminishes in size relative to the galactic disk in the sequence of spirals Sa to Sd. Stars that populate the bulge are normally old, Population II objects, dating back to their galaxy's earliest period. Studying bulges can therefore tell astronomers about how galaxies formed and evolved. According to current theory, a spiral galaxy begins as a giant, roughly spherical rotating mass of gas and dust, which gradually flattens out at the edges to create the disk. The original spherical shape lives on in the outermost region of a galaxy, known as the galactic halo, and, to a lesser extent, in the bulge. However, this view is challenged by observations of some bulges. The bulge of the Triangulum Galaxy (M33), for example, contains young- and intermediate-age stars, and has a star distribution that suggests the disk goes all the way to the center. This raises questions about how M33 as a whole formed and what triggered the birth of the relatively youthful stars in its bulge.

[+tokencollector]

Bulge

In astronomy, a bulge is a tightly packed group of stars. The term almost exclusively refers to the central group of stars found in most spiral galaxies. These bulges are composed primarily of stars that are older Population II, and hence smaller and redder (see stellar evolution). They are also in orbits that are essentially random compared to the plane of the galaxy, from whence the bulge shape arises. Furthermore, they have very little dust and gas compared to the disk portion of the galaxy, explaining why there are so few young stars (that is, there is little material left from which to form stars).

 

Bulges have similar properties to those of elliptical galaxies, and many astronomers now view them as essentially the same phenomenon. That is, elliptical galaxies are spiral galaxies that have lost their disk (most likely from a galactic merger with the right set of conditions), and all that is left behind is the bulge. Lenticular galaxies, meanwhile, are somewhere in between.

 

Most bulges are thought to host a supermassive black hole at their center. Such black holes by definition can not be observed (light cannot escape them), but various pieces of evidence strongly suggest their existence, both in the bulges of spiral galaxies and in the centers of ellipticals.

 

A few galaxies have bulges with Population I blue, young stars, or a mix of the two populations. While far from clearly understood, this is usually taken as evidence of interaction with another galaxy (such as galaxy merging), that sends new gas to the center and promotes star formation.

 

Disc

The galactic disc is the plane in which the spirals, bars and discs of disc galaxies exist. Galaxy discs tend to have more gas and dust, and younger stars than galactic bulges, or galactic haloes. It has been noted that the orbital velocity of stars in the disc of most disc galaxies is inconsistent with the amount of matter calculated for the galaxy

 

The term galactic halo denotes a component of spiral galaxies, including our galaxy, the Milky Way, which extends farther out than the disk, which is the most visible part of a spiral galaxy.

 

Halo

Galactic halo may mean:

 

the galactic spheroid component - stars

the galactic corona - some hot gas (ie. a plasma)

the dark matter halo of a galaxy

The galactic spheroid and the dark matter halo are concentrated towards the centre of their galaxy, and are roughly spherically symmetric.

 

In an elliptical galaxy, there is no sharp transition between the body of the galaxy and the halo.

[+ncfiddler]

1. Galactic disks -

The galactic disc is the plane in which the spirals, bars and discs of disc galaxies exist. Galaxy discs tend to have more gas and dust, and younger stars than galactic bulges, or galactic haloes. It has been noted that the orbital velocity of stars in the disc of most disc galaxies is inconsistent with the amount of matter calculated for the galaxy.

 

2. Galactic Halo - The galactic spheroid and the dark matter halo are concentrated towards the centre of their galaxy, and are roughly spherically symmetric.

 

3. Galactic Bulge -A bulge is a huge, tightly packed group of stars. The term commonly refers to the central group of stars found in most spiral galaxies.

 

Using the Hubble classification, the bulge of Sa galaxies is usually composed of population II stars, that is old, red stars with low metal content. Further, the bulge of Sa and SBa galaxies tends to be large. In contrast, the bulges of Sc and SBc galaxies are a great deal smaller, and are composed of of young, blue, Population I stars. Bulges have similar properties to those of elliptical galaxies (scaled down to lower mass and luminosity).

 

Many bulges are thought to host a supermassive black hole at their center. Such black holes have never been directly observed, but many indirect proofs exist. In our own galaxy, for instance, the object called Sagittarius A* is believed to be a supermassive black hole.

[+slowdownracer]

WOW!!! What a question. I might take a stab at it if I were at home, but I'm not, and can't take that long a break at work. Nice question, though, I like this kind of stuff. Maybe I'll check and see if you have an answer after I get home.

[+PengoFamily]

# he halo - a roughly spherical distribution which contains the oldest stars in the Galaxy,

# The nuclear bulge and Galactic Center.

# The disk, which contains the majority of the stars, including the sun, and virtually all of the gas and dust

 

The Halo

 

The Halo consists of the oldest stars known, including about 146 Globular Clusters, believed to have been formed during the early formation of the Galaxy with ages of 10-15 billion years from their H-R Diagrams. The halo is also filled with a very diffuse, hot, highly-ionized gas. The very hot gas in the halo produces a gamma-ray halo.

 

Neither the full extent nor the mass of the halo is well known. Investigations of the gaseous halos of other spiral galaxies show that the gas in the halo extends much further than previously thought, out to hundreds of thousands of light years. Studies of the rotation of the Milky Way show that the halo dominates the mass of the galaxy, but the material is not visible, now called dark matter.

 

The Disk

 

The disk of the Galaxy is a flattened, rotating system which contains the Sun and other intermediate-to-young stars. The sun sits about 2/3 of the way from the center to the edge of the disk (about 25,000l.y. by the most modern estimates). The sun revolves around the center of the galaxy about once

every 250 million years. The disk also the galaxy about contains atomic (HI) and molecular (H2) gas and dust.

 

The buldge

A galactic traveler nearing the center of the Milky Way will feel a greater pull of gravity as the ship approaches the densest and brightest part of our galaxy, a spherical region known as the central bulge.

The Milky Way Bar

 

Rendering of the Milky Way and its central bar as it might appear from above. Arrow shows location of our Sun. Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/R. Hurt

 

Things are much different here. Most of our galaxy is relatively uncrowded—the nearest star to our Sun, for example, is 4.2 light-years away. But roughly 10 million stars are known to orbit within a light-year of the galaxy's center.

 

Recent infrared surveys with NASA’s Spitzer space telescope confirmed that the Milky Way is not a perfect spiral galaxy but instead sports a long bar of stars within the central bulge. This galactic bar is believed to be made up of about 30 million stars, stretching 27,000 light-years from end to end. It consists mainly of old, red stars, which is one reason it stands out and can be detected.

 

The galactic bar is thought to spin like a propeller inside the Milky Way center, helping to create our galaxy’s unique spiral shape.

 

Observations of other galaxies also suggest that galactic bars plays an important role in feeding the colossal black holes believed to lay at the heart of many galaxies, including our own.

Edited April 13, 2007 by PengoFamily

[CinemaBoxers]

Galactic Disk

 

The flattened component of a spiral galaxy in which, together with many ordinary stars such as the Sun (see disk star), lie the biggest and brightest of stars – the O stars and B stars. The disk is also home to large tracts of interstellar material from which new stars are continually being made.

 

Galactic Halo

 

The term galactic halo denotes a component of spiral galaxies, including our galaxy, the Milky Way, which extends farther out than the disk, which is the most visible part of a spiral galaxy.

 

Galactic halo may mean:

 

* the galactic spheroid component - stars

* the galactic corona - some hot gas (ie. a plasma)

* the dark matter halo of a galaxy

 

Galacic Halo

 

The spheroidal mass of stars that forms the central hub of spiral and lenticular galaxies – the yoke, if such galaxies are imagined to resemble fried eggs. The bulge diminishes in size relative to the galactic disk in the sequence of spirals Sa to Sd. Stars that populate the bulge are normally old, Population II objects, dating back to their galaxy's earliest period. Studying bulges can therefore tell astronomers about how galaxies formed and evolved. According to current theory, a spiral galaxy begins as a giant, roughly spherical rotating mass of gas and dust, which gradually flattens out at the edges to create the disk. The original spherical shape lives on in the outermost region of a galaxy, known as the galactic halo, and, to a lesser extent, in the bulge.

[+tokencollector]

Dang, I didn't copy and pste fast enough

[+stellarscapes]

1) Galactic Disks: young stars, metal rich stars , in the disk of our galaxy, population I stars, O & B type stars

 

2) Galactic Halo: composed of globular clusters, old stars, metal poor stars, long lived stars

 

3) Galactic Bulge: Center of Milky Way galaxy, location in the constellation sagittarius, we are

located 28,000 LYs from the nucleus, contains a black hole in the center

[+tsunrisebey]

Galactic Disk:

The flattened component of a spiral galaxy in which, together with many ordinary stars such as the Sun (see disk star), lie the biggest and brightest of stars – the O stars and B stars. The disk is also home to large tracts of interstellar material from which new stars are continually being made.

 

Galatic halo:

A large, relatively dust-free, spherical region surrounding a spiral galaxy, such as our own. The inner, visible part of the halo, which has roughly the same diameter as the galactic disk, is occupied by Population II objects, including globular clusters and old, individual stars. Beyond this is a much larger region, called the dark halo or extended halo, containing large amounts of dark matter, the presence of which is revealed by its gravitational effect on the galaxy's rotation. The nature of galactic dark matter is still undetermined but the most popular theory, supported by some recent observations, is that the dark halo is home to vast numbers of small, unseen bodies known as MACHOs.

 

Galactic bulge:

The spheroidal mass of stars that forms the central hub of spiral and lenticular galaxies – the yoke, if such galaxies are imagined to resemble fried eggs. The bulge diminishes in size relative to the galactic disk in the sequence of spirals Sa to Sd. Stars that populate the bulge are normally old, Population II objects, dating back to their galaxy's earliest period. Studying bulges can therefore tell astronomers about how galaxies formed and evolved. According to current theory, a spiral galaxy begins as a giant, roughly spherical rotating mass of gas and dust, which gradually flattens out at the edges to create the disk. The original spherical shape lives on in the outermost region of a galaxy, known as the galactic halo, and, to a lesser extent, in the bulge. However, this view is challenged by observations of some bulges. The bulge of the Triangulum Galaxy (M33), for example, contains young- and intermediate-age stars, and has a star distribution that suggests the disk goes all the way to the center. This raises questions about how M33 as a whole formed and what triggered the birth of the relatively youthful stars in its bulge.

 

While I see a couple of properties, this is not what I am looking for. Cut and paste will not help you

[+Markle]

Wow... holy... wow.... I just got my computer to pull up the search page and when I got here to type in the answer.... I was clearly trounced. LOL

 

Nice job to the winner!! Whoever ye may be.

 

Thanks for the entertainment Tsun.

[+ArtieD]

1. have more gas and dust, and younger stars, e the biggest and brightest of stars – the O stars and B stars. The disk is also home to large tracts of interstellar material from which new stars are continually being made.

2. the galactic spheroid component - stars, the galactic corona - some hot gas (ie. a plasma), the dark matter halo of a galaxy, is occupied by Population II objects, including globular clusters and old, individual stars. Beyond this is a much larger region, called the dark halo or extended halo, containing large amounts of dark matter, The inner, visible part of the halo, which has roughly the same diameter as the galactic disk,

3. composed primarily of stars that are older Population II, and hence smaller and redder, also in orbits that are essentially random compared to the plane of the galaxy, have very little dust and gas compared to the disk portion of the galaxy, Most bulges are thought to host a supermassive black hole at their center

[+Toojin]

oops

Edited April 13, 2007 by Toojin & Bart

[+Markle]

I think that's a song by Muse.

[+dookie2000ca]

1. Galactic Disks

a. Disk Luminosity Distribution

b. Bulge Luminosity Distribution

c. Gas Distribution

d. Colors

 

2. Galactic Halo

a. devoid of gas and dust

b. cooler, dimmer stars

c. no young, luminous stars

d. stars travel in elliptical orbits about the center of the Galaxy

 

3. Galactic Bulge

a. huge, tightly packed group of stars

b. composed of Population II stars

c. thought to host a supermassive black hole at their center

d. similar properties to those of elliptical galaxies (scaled down to lower mass and luminosity)

[+ArtieD]

1. have more gas and dust,

and younger stars,

the the biggest and brightest of stars – the O stars and B stars.

The disk is also home to large tracts of interstellar material from which new stars are continually being made.

 

2. the galactic spheroid component - stars, the galactic corona - some hot gas (ie. a plasma),

the dark matter halo of a galaxy,

is occupied by Population II objects, including globular clusters and old, individual stars.

Beyond this is a much larger region, called the dark halo or extended halo, containing large amounts of dark matter,

The inner, visible part of the halo, which has roughly the same diameter as the galactic disk,

 

3. composed primarily of stars that are older Population II, and hence smaller and redder,

also in orbits that are essentially random compared to the plane of the galaxy,

have very little dust and gas compared to the disk portion of the galaxy,

Most bulges are thought to host a supermassive black hole at their center

[+PengoFamily]

halo: made up of gas and stars enveloping the galaxy. The halo is about 100,000 light-years in diameter and 1,000 light-years thick.

 

spiral disk: most of the milky way's stars are concentrated here, series of disc overlapping each other, there is the the thick disk, this disk and extreme disk

 

buldge:densist and brighest partof the mily way, But roughly 10 million stars are known to orbit within a light-year of the galaxy's center., Recent infrared surveys with NASA’s Spitzer space telescope confirmed that the Milky Way is not a perfect spiral galaxy but instead sports a long bar of stars within the central bulge. This galactic bar is believed to be made up of about 30 million stars, stretching 27,000 light-years from end to end. It consists mainly of old, red stars, which is one reason it stands out and can be detected.

[+tsunrisebey]

1. Galactic Disks

a. Disk Luminosity Distribution

b. Bulge Luminosity Distribution

c. Gas Distribution

d. Colors

 

2. Galactic Halo

a. devoid of gas and dust

b. cooler, dimmer stars

c. no young, luminous stars

d. stars travel in elliptical orbits about the center of the Galaxy

 

3. Galactic Bulge

a. huge, tightly packed group of stars

b. composed of Population II stars

c. thought to host a supermassive black hole at their center

d. similar properties to those of elliptical galaxies (scaled down to lower mass and luminosity)

 

This is the closest I've seen to what I am looking for. I'm sitting here with my Astronomy book open You are on the right track.....

[+UOTrackers]

I see lots of answers already but I'll give it a shot.

 

hmm on second though, while I find this extremely interesting, it's hard to concentrate on the information at hand while trying to win a contest and constantly wondering if it has already been won. *sighs* I'll go back and read about this stuff on my own time another time. Thanks for giving me incentive to learn something new!

[+dookie2000ca]

At least I'm brushing up on my astronomy!

[+tokencollector]

Disc

Highly flattened

Contains both young and old stars

Contains gas and dust

Site of ongoing star formation

Gas and stars move in circular orbits in the Galactic plane

 

Bulge

Somewhat flattened and elongated in the plane of the disk ("football shaped")

Contains both young and old stars; more old stars at greater distances from the center

Contains gas and dust, especially in the inner regions

Ongoing star formation in the inner regions

Stars have largely random orbits but with some net rotation about the Galactic center

 

Halo

Roughly spherical—mildly flattened

Contains old stars only

Contains no gas and dust

No star formation during the last 10 billion years

Stars have random orbits in three dimensions

[+ScoutingWV]

While I see a couple of properties, this is not what I am looking for. Cut and paste will not help you

 

That's as good as my internets gets.

 

Guess I need iNet 2.0

[+Markle]

Astronomy book!! I forgot I took that in college. I gotta find my old book!!

[+tokencollector]

Disc

Highly flattened

Contains both young and old stars

Contains gas and dust

Site of ongoing star formation

Gas and stars move in circular orbits in the Galactic plane

Spiral arms

Overall white coloration, with blue spiral arms

 

Bulge

Somewhat flattened and elongated in the plane of the disk ("football shaped")

Contains both young and old stars; more old stars at greater distances from the center

Contains gas and dust, especially in the inner regions

Ongoing star formation in the inner regions

Stars have largely random orbits but with some net rotation about the Galactic center

Ring of gas and dust near center; Galactic nucleus

Yellow-white

 

Halo

Roughly spherical—mildly flattened

Contains old stars only

Contains no gas and dust

No star formation during the last 10 billion years

Stars have random orbits in three dimensions

No obvious substructure

Reddish in color

[+CuMoChi]

Halo--

Thin gas

Gobular clusters

Hydrogen

old Stars

 

Disks--

Stars biggest and brighest

Intersella material

Oxygen

Gases

 

Galatic Bulge--

Stars

sequence of spirals as to ad

gas

dust

 

CuMoChi

[+tsunrisebey]

Disc

Highly flattened

Contains both young and old stars

Contains gas and dust

Site of ongoing star formation

Gas and stars move in circular orbits in the Galactic plane

Spiral arms

Overall white coloration, with blue spiral arms

 

Bulge

Somewhat flattened and elongated in the plane of the disk ("football shaped")

Contains both young and old stars; more old stars at greater distances from the center

Contains gas and dust, especially in the inner regions

Ongoing star formation in the inner regions

Stars have largely random orbits but with some net rotation about the Galactic center

Ring of gas and dust near center; Galactic nucleus

Yellow-white

 

Halo

Roughly spherical—mildly flattened

Contains old stars only

Contains no gas and dust

No star formation during the last 10 billion years

Stars have random orbits in three dimensions

No obvious substructure

Reddish in color

 

Very Nice and Congratulations!

[+Markle]

disk - all matter confined to the plane of the disk

No sharp boundaries

defined by stars at about 1000 pc thick

very weak magnetic field

contains associations and open clusters of stars

[+tokencollector]

Disc

Highly flattened

Contains both young and old stars

Contains gas and dust

Site of ongoing star formation

Gas and stars move in circular orbits in the Galactic plane

Spiral arms

Overall white coloration, with blue spiral arms

 

Bulge

Somewhat flattened and elongated in the plane of the disk ("football shaped")

Contains both young and old stars; more old stars at greater distances from the center

Contains gas and dust, especially in the inner regions

Ongoing star formation in the inner regions

Stars have largely random orbits but with some net rotation about the Galactic center

Ring of gas and dust near center; Galactic nucleus

Yellow-white

Hypothesized to have a black hole at center

 

Halo

Roughly spherical—mildly flattened

Contains old stars only

Contains no gas and dust

No star formation during the last 10 billion years

Stars have random orbits in three dimensions

No obvious substructure

Reddish in color

[+ncfiddler]

 

Visual sometimes helps

[+CuMoChi]

1. Galactic Disks

a. Disk Luminosity Distribution

b. Bulge Luminosity Distribution

c. Gas Distribution

d. oxygen

 

2. Galactic Halo

a. devoid of gas and dust

b. cooler, dimmer stars

c. no young, luminous stars

d. stars travel in elliptical orbits about the center of the Galaxy

 

3. Galactic Bulge

a. huge, tightly packed group of stars

b. composed of Population II stars

c. thought to host a supermassive black hole at their center

d. similar properties to those of elliptical galaxies (scaled down to lower mass and luminosity)

 

CuMochi

[+dookie2000ca]

Well done tokencollector! Well done indeed.

[+tokencollector]

Way Cool! I almost gave up before trying again. I'm glad I did!

 

THANKS!

[+Markle]

halo - part of spherical component

thin scattering of stars, star clusters and almost no gas and dust

cool, lower main sequence stars and giants

extends beyond edge of disk

stable glubular star clusters

 

bulge - similar to halo stars but center contains younger hot stars (Rose McGowan?)

obscures visual wavelengths due to concentration

[+UOTrackers]

Way Cool! I almost gave up before trying again. I'm glad I did!

 

THANKS!

Now if only you'd contact me about the Mission Mayhem I've been writing to you about!

[+Markle]

disk - nearly circular ordits in the plane of the galaxy

 

halo - randomly oriented elliptical orbits

 

I need to find some way to consolidate my posts

[+ncfiddler]

Good work tokencollector.

 

Thanks for the contest tsunrisebey.

[+tsunrisebey]

tokencollector posted what I was looking for. Thanks for playing everyone. Here were the possible answers:

 

Galactic Halo:

 

highly flattened

both young and old stars

contains gas and dust

gas and dust move in circular orbits

spiral arms

overall white coloration

 

Galactic Halo:

 

roughly spherical, mildly flattened

old stars

no gas or dust

no star formation in past 10 billion years

stars have random orbits

little disernable structure, globular clusters, tidal streams

reddish color

 

Galactic Bulge

 

somehwat flattened-elongated

both young and old stars

gas and dust in inner region

ongoing star formation

random orbits but net roation about galactic center

rings of gas and dust near center, central galactic nucleus

yellow-white color

 

send me your addy tc

Edited April 13, 2007 by tsunrisebey

[+Markle]

Congrats tokencollector!

 

I figured once I found my old book I had a chance.

 

Thanks for the contest Tsunrisebey!!

[+tsunrisebey]

you're welcome

[+tokencollector]

Way Cool! I almost gave up before trying again. I'm glad I did!

 

THANKS!

Now if only you'd contact me about the Mission Mayhem I've been writing to you about!

 

e-mail, PM and message through geocaching.com sent.

 

(I also replied on 4/4)

 

We'll get it straight yet .