Physics · Units of measurements, System of units, SI Units, fundamental and derived units
What is the approximation made in the parallax method?
What is the approximation made in the parallax method?
- A. All distances measured between two points on earth is zero
- B. All distances measured between two points on earth is constant
- C. Distance between a point on the earth and the planet is very large as compared to the distance between two points on earth's surface.
- D. No approximation is made
Step-by-step solution
The parallax method measures the apparent shift of a distant object when viewed from two different points. It uses the small-angle approximation, which assumes the distance to the object is much larger than the baseline (distance between observation points). This allows the parallax angle to be approximated as baseline/distance, making option C correct.