Question

Astrophysicists study the stars and other celestial bodies like planets and comets. During their observations they can only see the stars exploding, but they cannot hear the explosion even with powerful microphones. What would be the best explanation for this?

Option 1: Sound, a mechanical wave, can travel through a vacuum like outer space, but light, an electromagnetic wave, cannot.
Option 2: Sound, a mechanical wave, cannot travel through a vacuum like outer space, but light, an electromagnetic wave, can.
Option 3: Light, a mechanical wave, can travel through a vacuum like outer space, but sound, an electromagnetic wave, cannot.
Option 4: Light, a mechanical wave, cannot travel through a vacuum like outer space, but sound, an electromagnetic wave, can

Answer 1

Astrophysicists cannot hear stars exploding because sound cannot travel through the vacuum of space, whereas light, as electromagnetic radiation, can travel through a vacuum and be observed from Earth.

Step-by-step explanation:

The best explanation for why astrophysicists can see stars exploding but cannot hear the explosion even with powerful microphones is that sound, a mechanical wave, cannot travel through a vacuum like outer space, but light, an electromagnetic wave, can. Thus, the correct answer is Option 2. Sound needs a medium such as air, water, or a solid to propagate because it is made up of pressure disturbances. In contrast, light consists of electromagnetic waves which do not require a medium; they can propagate through the vacuum of space. This is why we can observe the light from celestial events millions of light-years away but cannot hear them.