Difference between revisions of "Astronomical Unit"

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An [[Astronomical Unit]] is a unit of measurement of distance, frequently used to measure inter-planetary distances.
 
An [[Astronomical Unit]] is a unit of measurement of distance, frequently used to measure inter-planetary distances.
 
* It is an [[Astrography|astrographic]] scale measurement.
 
* It is an [[Astrography|astrographic]] scale measurement.
 
* It is a standard [[Third Imperium|Imperial]] [[metric]].
 
* It is a standard [[Third Imperium|Imperial]] [[metric]].
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Please refer to the following [[AAB]] [[Library Data]] for more information: <br>
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== Description ([[Specifications]]) ==
 
== Description ([[Specifications]]) ==
One ''Astronomical Unit'' is about 150 million [[kilometer]]s (or, more precisely, 149¨597 870 691 ± 30 [[meter]]s), or about 93 million miles.  
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One ''Imperial'' ''Astronomical Unit'' is defined to be exactly 150 million [[kilometer|Imperial standard kilometer]]s.{{Unpublished cite|author= [[WHULorigan]]|citeName= WHUL#1}} The original ''Solomani Astronomical Unit'' of Old Terra, based on the Terra-Sol average orbital distance from which it was derived, is 149,597,870.691 ± .030 [[kilometer]]s, or about 93 million miles ''(Old Terran Customary Units)''.  
 
* The standard abbreviation is [[AU]].
 
* The standard abbreviation is [[AU]].
* One Astronomical Unit is approximately equal to 500 [[light-second]]s.
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* One ''Imperial Astronomical Unit'' is equal to exactly ''500 [[light-second]]s''.
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* One ''[[Parsec#History_.26_Background_.28Dossier.29|Imperial Standard Parsec]]'' is exactly equal to ''200,000 <small>AU</small>''.{{Unpublished cite|author= [[WHULorigan]]|citeName= WHUL#1}}
  
 
== History & Background ([[Dossier]]) ==
 
== History & Background ([[Dossier]]) ==
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=== Imperial vs. Solomani Astronomical Unit Usage ===
 
=== Imperial vs. Solomani Astronomical Unit Usage ===
The [[Solomani]] define the Astronomical Unit as the distance between [[Terra (world)|Terra]] and Sol, the [[system]]'s primary [[star]].
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The [[Solomani]] define the ''Astronomical Unit'' as the distance between [[Terra (world)|Terra]] and [[Sol (star)|Sol]], the [[system]]'s primary [[star]], yielding a value of almost precisely 499 [[light-second]]s.
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Modern [[Third Imperium|Imperial]] usage defines the [[AU]] to be exactly 150 million Imperial standard kilometers, which by extension yields a distance calculation of exactly 500 ls. {{Unpublished cite|author= [[WHULorigan]]|citeName= WHUL#1}}<ref><small>See note on [[Talk:Astronomical_Unit|Discussion/Talk page]].</small></ref> Given the closeness of the calculated historic value of the old Terran parsec at slightly more than 200,000 [[AU]]s, the [[Imperial Science Union]] and [[Imperial Bureaucracy#Ministry of Science|Imperial Bureau of Standards]] have defined the Imperial Standard Metric Parsec to be exactly 200,000 [[AU]]s.{{Unpublished cite|author= [[WHULorigan]]|citeName= WHUL#1}} This yields a value of ~ 3.171 ly.
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This definition of the [[AU]] was broadly adopted following the [[Solomani Rim War]], in order to avoid the use of specifically Terracentric [[metric]]s.{{Unpublished cite|author= [[Ade Stewart]] }}
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Modern [[Third Imperium|Imperial]] usage bases the [[AU]] on the distance between [[Capital (world)|Capital]] and its [[Star|sun]], which happens to have an almost identical orbital distance to that of [[Terra (world)|Terra]] around Sol. This definition of the [[AU]] was broadly adopted following the [[Solomani Rim War]], in order to avoid the use of specifically Terracentric [[metric]]s.{{Unpublished cite|author= [[Ade Stewart]] }}
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=== Library Data Referral Tree ===
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Please refer to the following [[AAB]] [[Library Data]] for more information: <br>
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''[[Metric]]s & Terminology:''
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== References & Contributors ([[Sources]]) ==
 
== References & Contributors ([[Sources]]) ==

Latest revision as of 04:47, 9 December 2025

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An Astronomical Unit is a unit of measurement of distance, frequently used to measure inter-planetary distances.


Description (Specifications)[edit]

One Imperial Astronomical Unit is defined to be exactly 150 million Imperial standard kilometers.[1] The original Solomani Astronomical Unit of Old Terra, based on the Terra-Sol average orbital distance from which it was derived, is 149,597,870.691 ± .030 kilometers, or about 93 million miles (Old Terran Customary Units).

History & Background (Dossier)[edit]

Because the definition of a Parsec originally relied upon the Astronomical Unit, the AU has become a standard unit of measurement within the Imperium.

Imperial vs. Solomani Astronomical Unit Usage[edit]

The Solomani define the Astronomical Unit as the distance between Terra and Sol, the system's primary star, yielding a value of almost precisely 499 light-seconds.

Modern Imperial usage defines the AU to be exactly 150 million Imperial standard kilometers, which by extension yields a distance calculation of exactly 500 ls. [1][2] Given the closeness of the calculated historic value of the old Terran parsec at slightly more than 200,000 AUs, the Imperial Science Union and Imperial Bureau of Standards have defined the Imperial Standard Metric Parsec to be exactly 200,000 AUs.[1] This yields a value of ~ 3.171 ly.

This definition of the AU was broadly adopted following the Solomani Rim War, in order to avoid the use of specifically Terracentric metrics.[3]



Library Data Referral Tree[edit]

Please refer to the following AAB Library Data for more information:
Metrics & Terminology:

  • NAFAL (STL) - (Not As Fast As Light) / (Slower Than Light)
  • Light Speed (c)
  • FTL - (Faster Than Light) - "Superluminal"
» Imperial Standard Astronomical Unit
» Solomani Parsec
» Vilani Parsec ("Deshi")
» Imperial Standard Parsec



References & Contributors (Sources)[edit]

Smallwikipedialogo.png This page uses content from Wikipedia. The original article was at Astronomical_unit. The list of authors can be seen in the page history. The text of Wikipedia is available under the Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported License.
This list of sources was used by the Traveller Wiki Editorial Team and individual contributors to compose this article. Copyrighted material is used under license from Mongoose Publishing or by permission of the author. The page history lists all of the contributions.
  1. 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 Information provided to the library by WHULorigan
  2. See note on Discussion/Talk page.
  3. Information provided to the library by Ade Stewart