What does the rotation curve of our galaxy reveal?

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The rotation curve tells you the amount of mass inside a given distance from the center. You find how the mass is distributed in the Galaxy by looking at how the amount of enclosed mass changes with the size of the orbits.Oct 12, 2020

What does a rotation curve show?

A rotation curve is a plot showing how orbital velocity, V, varies with distance from the centre of the object, R. … Example rotation curves for 1) a solid body, 2) the Solar System and 3) a spiral galaxy.

What does the rotation curve of our galaxy tell us quizlet?

What does the rotation curve of our Galaxy tell us about the Galaxy's total mass? It tells us that the galaxy is much bigger then we expected, and that the luminous part of the galaxy is only the 'tip of the iceberg'.

What do rotation curves of spiral galaxies show?

Rotation curves for spiral galaxies show: most have dark halos. How massive are the largest known galaxies? … It is now believed the majority of mass for most galaxies lies in their dark halos.

What does the rotation curve and Kepler’s third law reveal about the galaxy?

Rotation following Kepler's 3rd law is shown above as planet-like or differential rotation. Notice that the orbital speeds falls off as you go to greater radii within the Galaxy. This is called a Keplerian rotation curve. … This means that the mass of the Galaxy increases with increasing distance from the center.

Why are galaxy rotation curves flat?

3. Rotation curves of galaxies are flat. The velocities of objects (stars or gas) orbiting the centers of galaxies, rather than decreasing as a function of the distance from the galactic centers as had been expected, remain constant out to very large radii.

What does a galaxy’s rotation curve tell us about the distribution of mass in the galaxy?

The rotation curve tells you the amount of mass inside a given distance from the center. You find how the mass is distributed in the Galaxy by looking at how the amount of enclosed mass changes with the size of the orbits.

What is the rotation curve of a galaxy similar to quizlet?

Dark matter and dark energy are two aspects of the same phenomenon. What is a rotation curve of a galaxy? It is a plot of the rotation rate in a galaxy as a function of distance from the galaxy's center. You just studied 21 terms!

What is a rotation curve astronomy quizlet?

What is a rotation curve? a graph showing how orbital velocity depends on distance from the center for a spiral galaxy.