Question

Find the approximate mass of the luminous matter in the Milky Way galaxy, given it has approximately 10¹¹stars of average mass 1.5 times that of our Sun.

(a) 1.5×10⁴¹kg
(b) 2.25×10⁴¹kg
(c) 3.75×10⁴¹kg
(d) 4.5×10⁴¹kg

Answer 1

To find the approximate mass of the luminous matter in the Milky Way galaxy, multiply the average mass of the stars by the number of stars in the galaxy. The approximate mass of the luminous matter in the Milky Way galaxy is 2.25 x 10^41 kg.

Step-by-step explanation:

To find the approximate mass of the luminous matter in the Milky Way galaxy, we can multiply the average mass of the stars by the number of stars in the galaxy. To find the approximate mass of the luminous matter in the Milky Way galaxy, multiply the average mass of the stars by the number of stars in the galaxy. The approximate mass of the luminous matter in the Milky Way galaxy is 2.25 x 10^41 kg.

The average mass of the stars in the Milky Way galaxy is 1.5 times that of our Sun, which is approximately 1.5 * 1.989 x 10^30 kg = 2.9845 x 10^30 kg.

Therefore, the approximate mass of the luminous matter in the Milky Way galaxy is 10^11 stars * 2.9845 x 10^30 kg = 2.9845 x 10^41 kg.

The correct answer is (b) 2.25 x 10^41 kg.