Wikipedia

Wikipedia:WikiProject Astronomical objects

This is an old revision of this page, as edited by Hurricane Devon (talk | contribs) at 22:07, 19 March 2006 (→Galaxy cluster: cleaned-up). The present address (URL) is a permanent link to this revision, which may differ significantly from the current revision.

"The Earth is the cradle of humanity, but one can not live in a cradle forever" ~ Konstantin Tsiolkovsky

The purpose of this wiki-project is to create, improve and standardize articles for astronomical objects, which includes notable objects that exist outside of the Earth. The templates to list basic information, along with guideline reccomendations, are given below.

Open tasks for the Astronomical objects WikiProject Wikipedia Project: Astronomical objects

(edit or discuss this box)

Useful Templates

When filling in scientific data, you may find the following templates useful:

  • {{±|pos|neg}} which produces: +pos
    −neg     used thus: 500 +35
    −22     km    . (Avoid using it in a link, though: it looks bad)
  • {{e|n}} which produces: ×10n used thus: 5.97{{e|24}} kg, which gives 5.97×1024 kg.

Articles listed for deletion

Planets and moons

Body name
[image of object]
Discovery
Discovered by ___name___
Discovered on ___date___
Orbital characteristics (Epoch J2000)
Semi-major axis km
(AU)
Ortbital circumference Tm (AU)
Eccentricity number
Perihelion km (AU)
Aphelion km (AU)
Orbital period d (other units, such as Julian years)
Synodic period d (a)
(w/respect to Earth)
Avg. orbital speed km/s
Max. orbital speed km/s
Min. orbital speed km/s
Inclination (to Ecliptic) °
(° to Sun's equator)
Longitude of the
ascending node 		decimal ° (° ' ")
Argument of the
perihelion 		decimal ° (° ' ")
Satellites number
Satellite of planet (only for Moons)
Physical characteristics
Mean diameter km (axis × axis × axis for ellipsoids)
Equatorial diameter km (Earth units)
Polar diameter km (Earth units)
Oblateness number
Surface area km2 (Earth units)
Volume km3 (Earth units)
Mass kg (Earth units)
Mean density g/cm3
Surface gravity m/s2 (gees)
Escape velocity km/s
Rotation period d (h)
Rotation velocity km/h (m/s) (at the equator)
Obliquity °
Right ascension
of North pole 		° (h min s)
Declination °
Albedo number
Surface temperature
min mean max
nnn K nnn K nnn K
Atmospheric characteristics
Pressure kPa
most common %
next-most-common %
etcetera %

This page is where work is being done to come up with a generic table template to be used for organizing a list of facts about various astronomical bodies such as planets, natural satellites, and maybe also smaller bodies such as asteroids and comets (though I suspect that both asteroids and comets will be better served by having their own template design).

Most of these entries should be measured in SI units. Some of them, however, should have more "human-accessible" units, in addition to SI units. I've indicated some cases with a second unit name in brackets. In the case of times (orbital periods, rotation), I think it best to give all periods in days for comparison purposes, and provide a translation (in parentheses) into years, days, hours, etc.; whatever is most appropriate for the duration being described.

Oh, and compared to table templates for things like the elements, I think that this template should be considered somewhat more flexible. Moons with no atmosphere whatsoever could skip the atmospheric composition section entirely, for example (though atmospheric density would still be listed). Moons also wouldn't have their orbital radii listed in AU, since AUs are such large units. For planets, use "perihelion" and "aphelion" instead of "periapsis" and "apoapsis."

In the case of "number of moons" and "is a moon of", only one of these rows will be used by any given object. There aren't any moons with moons (yet), though perhaps "co-orbital with" might be a useful row to add in a few cases.

A set of colours for use in the 2-column headers of this table:

rocky terrestrial body Transition metal color from the periodic table; rocky planets have lots of metals compared to the icy ones. Also, red is a "warmer" color than green, which fits the distribution of rocky and icy planets in the solar system.
icy terrestrial body green contrasts nicely with the pink of rocky planets. Also, on the periodic table, it's the color of carbon, oxygen, hydrogen, and other common components of outer-solar-system ice.
gas giant body blue skies, and noble gases on the periodic table (including helium, which is only found in large quantities on gas giants. It escapes from smaller planets). Also, two out of four gas giants prefer the cool soothing color of blue.

On orbital characteristics: The orbital circumference should be computed from the semi-major axis using Ramanujan's approximation for ellipses. The ratio of that circumference to the period then gives the average orbital speed. The minimum and maximum speeds follow from Kepler's laws:   and  . Note that, by convention, all orbital parameters are given in the primocentric reference system (heliocentric for the planets).

On physical characteristics: The surface area and volume of non-spherical objects (e.g. moonlets, asteroids) must use the proper ellipsoid formulae, because even slight departures from sphericity will make a large difference, particularly for the area.

On the subject of obliquity: Obliquity is the angle between the object's axis of rotation and the normal to the plane of its orbit. Do not confuse this with the Tilt listed in the JPL pages, which is a measure of the angle between the local Laplace plane and the primary's equatorial plane. In fact, most inner moons have synchronous rotations, so their obliquities will be, by definition, zero. Outer moons simply have not been seen from close up enough to determine their true obliquities (although Phoebe, recently seen by the Cassini probe, may be an exception).

Conversion log

Still to be done:

Done: {

—

—

}

Planet Template

Earth

Template: {{Planet}}

The above fields need incorporating into this template.

Footers

Useful sources

Minor planets (asteroids, comets, Kuiperoids, etc)

{{minor planet}} {{Minor Planet}}

Template:Minor Planet

The example on the far right is the recommended table format for minor planets —note the recommended unit links. It is generated by the {{Minor Planet}} template. The template has an optional astron argument whose default value is helion; this allows its use to describe asteroid moons, as in the S/2000 (1998 WW31) 1 example.

Urhixidur wrote a nifty Windows tool that can greatly facilitate preparation of these. The most recent version can be downloaded from http://www.bigfoot.com/~D.U.Thibault (at the bottom of the page, under the heading "Delphi 7 and Wikipedia").

A more compact form of this with just the orbital elements is on the near right {{Minor planet}} (note the lower case 'p'). The two are incompatible at the moment, something which Nicholas intends to fix one day.

A few short-hand templates are useful when dealing with asteroids with provisional designations. They are Template:mp, Template:mpl, and Template:mpl-. Mpl ("minor planet link") is used to write a link, like so {{mpl|(15874) 1996 TL|66}} = (15874) 1996 TL66, whilst mp ("minor planet") saves you from typing <sub></sub> if you'd rather not: {{mp|(15874) 1996 TL|66}} = (15874) 1996 TL66. Mpl- is used with numbered asteroids that have kept (so far) their provisional designations: {{mpl-|15760|1992 QB|1}} = 1992 QB1 instead of (15760) 1992 QB1.

Footers

Particularly useful are {{MinorPlanets Navigator}} and {{MinorPlanets Footer}}. Scroll down beyond the table to the right to see examples of these.

Comets

9P/Tempel; Tempel 1
File:Tempel 1 Deep Impact 5min.jpg
Nucleus imaged by the Deep Impact impactor
Discovery
Discovered byErnst Wilhelm Leberecht Tempel
Discovery dateApril 3, 1867
Designations
9P/1867 G1; 1867 II;
9P/1873 G1; 1873 I; 1873a
1879 III; 1879b
9P/1967 L1; 1966 VII
9P/1972 A1; 1972 V; 1972a
1978 II; 1977i
1983 XI; 1982j
1989 I; 1987e1
1994 XIX; 1993c
Orbital characteristics
EpochMarch 6, 2006
Aphelion4.737 AU
Perihelion1.506 AU
Semi-major axis3.122 AU
Eccentricity0.5175
Orbital period5.515 a
Inclination10.5301°
Last perihelionJuly 5, 2005
Next perihelion2011

As discussed above, comets might be served better by a different template. Here is a suggestion for {{Comet}} we can toy with until we are happy with it. Awolf002 00:23, 5 December 2005 (UTC)[reply]


Numbered comets
Previous
8P/Tuttle 		9P/Tempel Next
10P/Tempel

Stars

Starbox tree

Rigil Kentaurus
 
The position of Alpha Centauri.
Observation data
Epoch J2000      Equinox J2000
Constellation Centaurus
Right ascension 14h 39m 36.5s
Declination -62° 50′ 2.72″
Apparent magnitude (V) 0.01
Characteristics
Spectral type G2 V
U−B color index 0.24
B−V color index 0.65
Variable type N/A
Astrometry
Radial velocity (Rv)21.6 km/s
Proper motion (μ) RA: -3678.19 mas/yr
Dec.: +481.84 mas/yr
Parallax (π)747.23±1.17 mas
Distance4.38 ly
(1.33 pc)
Absolute magnitude (MV)4.40
Details
Mass1.10/0.91 M☉
Radius1.23/0.87 R☉
Luminosity1.57/0.51 L☉
Temperature5,800/5,300 K
Metallicity130-230% Sun
Rotation?
Age5-6 × 109 years
Orbit
CompanionAlpha Centauri B
Period (P)79.92 yr
Semi-major axis (a)17.515″
Eccentricity (e)0.516
Inclination (i)79.24°
Longitude of the node (Ω)204.87° (ascending)°
Periastron epoch (T)1955.56
Other designations
α1 Cen, CP -60° 5483 A, Gliese 559A, FK5 538, HD 128620, HIP 71683, HR 5459, LHS 50, SAO 252838, YPC 3309.00

This table is composed of the following sub-templates:

References: [1] [2] [3]

Short star template

Rigil Kentaurus A
Observation data
Epoch 2000      Equinox 2000
Constellation Centaurus
Right ascension 14h 39m 36.5s
Declination -62° 50' 2.72"
Apparent magnitude (V) 0.01
Distance4.38 ly
(1.33 pc)
Spectral typeG2 V
Other designations
α1 Cen, HD 128620, CP-60°5483 A, HR 5459, HIP 71683

This template is for stubby star articles, and should be replaced with the full template when the article is expanded.

Footers

Extrasolar planets

TrES-1
  TrES-1
Orbital characteristics
0.0393 (± 0.0007)
Eccentricity0.135 (± 0.096)
3.030065 (± 0.000008)
Inclination88.2 (± 1)
Physical characteristics
Mass0.61 (± 0.06)
Mean density
?

Supernovae

SN 2004dj
II-P
Date2004/07/31.76 UTC
Right ascension07h 37m 17.044s
Declination+65° 35′ 57.84″
EpochJ2000.0
HostNGC 2403
ProgenitorUnknown star in compact
cluster Sandage 96
Progenitor typeUnknown
Colour (B-V)Unknown
Notable featuresNone
Peak apparent magnitude+11.2
[edit on Wikidata]

Template: {{Supernova }}

This is a table template that should be used for supernovae. It automatically assigns the article to Category:Supernovae.

Star Clusters

NGC 6656
Object typeWikiProject  
Other designationsMessier 22
Observation data
(Epoch J2000.0)
18h 36m 18s
Declination−23° 53′ 58″
Distance10.4 kly
In visual light (V)
5.1
Size
32.0″
Mass105 to 106 M☉
[edit on Wikidata]

Template: {{Cluster}}

Sample table for M22. Please modify and improve as needed.

The template is for open and globular clusters.

Galaxies

Template: {{Galaxy}}

This example table should be edited and used for galaxies.

Notes: Please see List of galaxies to find galaxies that do not yet have infoboxes/factsheets.
Please categorise your galaxy in a subcategory of Category:Galaxies

Galaxy cluster

Stephan's Quintet
File:Stephan'sQuintet.jpg Stephan's Quintet, with NGC 7319 (bottom right),
NGC 7320 (top right),NGC 7318A and 7318B (center),
and NGC 7317 (top left)
Observation data (Epoch )
Constellation(s)Pegasus
Number of galaxies5
Distance300 million
Other designations
HGC 92

Template: {{Galaxy cluster}}

This example table should be edited and used for galaxy groups, clusters, clouds, and superclusters.

Nebulae

Planetary Nebulae

WikiProject Astronomical objects
Nebula
Observation data: J2000.0 epoch
Right ascension19h 59.6m
Declination+22° 43′
Distance1,250 ly ly
Apparent magnitude (V)+7.4
Apparent dimensions (V)8.0 × 5.7 arcmins
ConstellationVulpecula
Physical characteristics
Radius- ly
Absolute magnitude (V)-
Notable features-
DesignationsNGC 6853, M27
See also: Lists of nebulae

Template: {{Planetary nebula}}

This example should be copied and used for all planetary nebulae. See List of planetary nebulae for articles on planetary nebulae. Please place new planetary nebulae on this list, and categorize in Category:Planetary nebulae, the category of its constellation, and the category of its catalog (ex:Category:Messier objects).

Diffuse Nebulae

WikiProject Astronomical objects
Nebula
Observation data: J2000.0 epoch
Right ascension05h 32m 49s
Declination-05° 25′
Distance1,600 ly ly
Apparent magnitude (V)+4.0
Apparent dimensions (V)85 × 60 arcmins
ConstellationOrion
Physical characteristics
Radius- ly
Absolute magnitude (V)-
Notable features-
DesignationsNGC 1976, M42
See also: Lists of nebulae

Template: {{Diffuse nebula}}

This example should be copied and used for all diffuse nebulae. See List of diffuse nebulae for articles on ddiffuse nebulae. Please place new diffuse nebulae on this list, and categorize in Category:Diffuse nebulae, the category of its constellation, and the category of its catalog (ex:Category:Messier objects).

Dark Nebulae

WikiProject Astronomical objects
Dark nebula
Observation data: J2000.0 epoch
Right ascension05h 40m 59.0s
Declination-02° 27′ 30.0"
Distance1,500 ly ly
Apparent magnitude (V)-
Apparent dimensions (V)8 × 6 arcmins
ConstellationOrion
Physical characteristics
Radius- ly
Absolute magnitude (V)-
Notable features-
DesignationsIC 434, Barnard 33
See also: Lists of nebulae

Template: {{Dark nebula}}

Currently (2005) there are only two dark nebulae on Wikipedia, see List of dark nebulae.

Participants

  • AMcWhatever I can do to help...
  • Ardric47 I am by now probably a de facto minor participant, having done some lists and things with sourcing.
  • Awolf002. Count me in! Up to now I just worked on biographies (crater eponyms) and this project looks good.
  • Eric Forste (talk) I feel as if this is the first wikiproject I've joined, so I'm gonna sign my name to it. All y'all that got this thing started up could go ahead and sign yours above mine (or we could just follow the alphabetical convention). Right now I'm working in a sandbox on adding the infobox to Proteus and then I'll be working on Nereid if no one beats me to it.
  • Eurocommuter Contributing to trans-Neptunian-related articles, especially with diagrams and solid references (but offering arXiv preprints).
  • Nicholas. I'm here too.
  • Uber nemo (talk). I'll sign my name alphabetically. I am currently working on galaxy stubs and infoboxless articles.
  • Urhixidur (talk). I've been banging away at asteroids, mostly.
  • Hurricane Devon ( Talk ) I'll do galaxies and exoplanets.
  • JamesHoadley (talk) It seems I'm helping out at the moment, so I may as well put my name down. Mostly I work on solar system planets and moons, deep sky stuff (nebulae, galaxies) and spacecraft (not in this topic).
  • siafu Working on maintaining the pages on the planets recently.
  • shaggy Mostly working on cleaning up articles on trans-Neptunian objects and centaurs. Also, creating articles for notable TNOs and centaurs.
Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Wikipedia:WikiProject_Astronomical_objects&oldid=44560865"