Ay 124 Winter 1992: Assignment #2 ___________________ _____________ Reading: GKK chapter 2; MB chapter 4. Bahcall & Soneira (1980; at least the handout), and/or Bahcall (1986, ARAA 24, 577). For Thursday, Jan. 23: Read MB chapters 6 and 7. Skim through GKK chapters 9 and 10. A little computational problem, due on Monday, Jan. 27: o Assume the disk luminosity function given by Eq. (1) of Bahcall & Soneira (1980). o Assume that the vertical distribution can be approximated by two exponentials, depending on M(V), as in Fig. 2 of Bahcall & Soneira (1980); approximate it as a step function. o Neglect the interstellar extinction, and the spheroid. o Compute differential and integrated star counts, N(m) and A(m) towards the Galactic pole, down to m(V) = 28. o Compare your results with those of Bahcall & Soneira (1980), and discuss the discrepancies. (If you think this is tough, try other directions, and do not neglect the extinction and the spheroid.)