
The term arcsecond refers to the angle measurement, and an arc is used because of the Earth's movement around the Sun in a particular orbit. In other simple terms, a single parsec can be conceived to be the distance to a celestial object whose apparent position changes by one arc second from one point of the Earth's orbit to another point. The difference between the position of the apparent location from its original location is measured using an angle which is formed if we observe two lines of sight that form a triangle in the orbits of the Earth, and we call this parallax angle or Parsec angle. A light year is defined as the distance light takes to travel in one year of Earth. The concept of Parsecs and light years comes from the branch of physics known as astronomy. In order to find the relationship between a parsec and a light year, we need to familiarise ourselves with other terms as well. Additionally, the use of parsecs allows for more precise measurements and calculations, as it takes into account the curvature of space and the distortions caused by the presence of other massive objects.
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The size of a parsec is based on the Earth's orbit around the Sun, which makes it a well-defined and universal unit of measurement.īy using parsecs, astronomers can compare the distances between stars and other celestial objects more easily, as well as calculate the sizes of galaxies and other large structures in the universe. It is possible that when we view a particular star in the night sky, the Earth will be located at one position, which is from one specific side of the Sun's orbit, and when we view it again after some time period is passed, the same star may be appearing elsewhere due to the continuous revolving motion of Earth in the orbit of the Sun.ĭue to this fact we use parsecs in astronomy as It provides a convenient and standard way to describe large distances within our galaxy and beyond. This effect is similar to an illusion in which our viewpoint changes over a period of time due to the constant revolving motion of the Earth. This motion varies constantly with respect to time, because of which a parallax error happens in which the nearby objects seem to appear more distant from their actual position. \\1 \: par sec \approx \: 3.261563777\:\: light \: \:yearĪs we know, the planet Earth rotates in a constant motion and also revolves around the Sun. Calculation Of Parsecġ \: parsec = \frac \: m This unit is preferred in the field of astronomy and astrophysics. The term was given by British astronomer Herbert Hall Turner in 1913 to make it easy for astronomers to make measurements of astronomical distances using raw observational data easy. The word Parsec is a mixture of "parallax of one second".

The Parsec is a unit of length used for measuring the long distances of astronomical objects which are found outside the Solar System. A parsec or parallax second is the measurement of the distance at which the average radius of the Earth's orbit (AU) subtends an angle of one arcsecond.
