Astronomy Review

1. Astronomy Review

2. What is this phase of the moon? • a. Third or Last Quarter Moon • b. Waxing crescent Moon • c. First Quarter Moon • d. Full Moon • e. New Moon

3. The rotation of the Earth on its axis causes . . . • a. the Sun to appear to rise, travel through the sky, and then set. • b. the Moon to appear to rise, travel through the sky, and then set. • c. the stars to appear to rise, travel through the sky, and then set. • d. (a) and (b) • e. all of the above

4. The revolution of the Earth around the Sun in a year causes . . . • a. stars to appear to change locations in the sky. • b. constellations to appear to distort or change their shapes. • c. the Sun to appear to rise, travel through the sky, and set. • d.(a) and (b) • e. all of the above

5. What day is the longest (greatest time of daylight) in the northern hemisphere? • a. December 21st • b. March 21st • c. September 21st • d. June 21st

6. What is this phase of the Moon? • a.1st quarter Moon • b. last or 3rd quarter Moon • c. waning crescent • d. waxing gibbous • e. waxing crescent

7. The main contribution of Isaac Newton to astronomy was     . . . • a. the heliocentric idea, that the Earth and planets orbit the Sun.      • b. evidence, such as phases of Venus and moons around Jupiter, that support the heliocentric theory. • c. the laws of planetary motion.      • d. the idea that the laws of physics apply on Earth and to the universe. • e. collecting the most accurate data of the positions of stars and planets.

8. Planetary orbits being elliptical rather than circular is accounted for by • a. Kepler’s first law. • b. Kepler’s second law. • c. Kepler’s third law. • d. Newton’s theory of light.

9. Determining the relative distances of each planet from the Sun or the relative size of the solar system requires knowing . . . • a. Kepler’s first law.      • b. Kepler’s second law.      • c. Kepler’s third law. • d. Newton’s theory of gravity. • e. Galileo’s description of the heliocentric theory.

10. What is the type of eclipse shown above called? • a. partial solar eclipse • b. total solar eclipse • c. partial lunar eclipse • d. total lunar eclipse

11. A boat captain needs to launch at high tide.  He just missed having his ship ready to launch when a high tide peaked at 9:00 a.m.  At about what time will the next high tide come? • a. about 8:30 a.m. the next day • b. about 9:30 p.m. • c. tides are unpredictable. • d. about 9:00 p.m.

12. The nearest star beyond the Sun is about how far away? • a. 1/2 light year • b. 4 light years • c. 8 light years • d. 300 light years

13. What phase must the Moon be in for a solar eclipse to occur? • a. full • b. last quarter • c. first quarter • d. new • e. crescent

14. What conditions cause a person to observe this type of eclipse? • a. The Moon is nearer to Earth than during a total solar eclipse. • b. The Sun is nearer to Earth than during a total solar eclipse. • c. The Moon is farther from Earth than during a total solar eclipse. • d. The Sun is farther from Earth than during a total solar eclipse. • e. The Moon is farther from Earth than during a total lunar eclipse.

15. What positions of the Sun, Earth and Moon cause this type of solar eclipse? • a. Moon farther from Earth than the Sun • b. Full Moon between Earth and Sun • c. Moon between Earth and Sun • d. Earth between Sun and Moon 

16. Why do lunar eclipses occur more often than solar eclipses? • a. The Earth’s rotation is faster than the Moon’s orbital speed around the Earth. • b. The Moon’s orbital plane is more tilted than the Earth’s axial tilt. • c. The Moon orbits the Earth faster than Earth orbits the Sun. • d. The Earth’s shadow is larger than the Moon’s shadow.

17. What causes the seasons? • a. The tilt of the Earth’s axis is toward the Sun during the summer allowing the Sun’s rays to more directly hit the Earth. • b. The rotation of the Earth slows during the summer allowing days to be longer than nights. • c. The Sun releases more energy during summer than in winter. • d. The Earth is closer to the Sun in summer than in winter because of the Earth’s elliptical  orbit.

18. When will the highest tides be experienced? • a. when the Earth and Moon are in a line • b. when the Earth, Moon and Sun are all in a line • c. when the Earth and Moon are in a line and the Sun is perpendicular to them • d. when the Moon and Sun are in a line and the Earth is perpendicular to them

19. What is parallax? • a. The distance to an object. • b. The angle taken up by the size of an object, as seen by an observer. • c. The shift in angular position of an object as it moves in space. • d. The apparent shift in position of an object as the observer moves.

20. Apparent magnitude is a measure of • a. the intrinsic brightness (actual light output) of a star. • b. the size (diameter) of a star. • c. the surface temperature of a star. • d. the brightness of a star, as seen from the Earth.

21. The spectral type of a star (e.g., O, B, A, F, G, K, and M) is determined by its • a. size • b. luminosity • c. absolute magnitude • d. surface temperature

22. New stars are formed from • a. hot supernova remnants. • b. activity around black holes in the centers of galaxies. • c. huge, cool dust and gas nebulae. • d. pure energy in free space.

23. When a star leaves the main sequence and expands toward the red giant region, what is happening inside the star? • a. Helium burning is taking place; the core itself is almost pure carbon and oxygen. • b. Hydrogen burning is taking place; the core itself is almost pure helium and stops fusion. • c. Hydrogen burning is taking place; the core has not yet started thermonuclear reactions, and is still mostly hydrogen. • d. Helium is being converted into carbon and oxygen in the core.

24. Stars that have ejected a planetary nebula go on to become • a. red giants. • b. protostars. • c. supernovae. • d. white dwarfs.

25. What type of objects are found along the blue line labeled A? • a. nebulae and protostars • b. main sequence stars • c. red giant stars • d. white dwarf stars • e. supergiant stars

26. What type of objects are found in the area labeled B? • a. nebulae and protostars • b. main sequence stars • c. red giant stars • d. white dwarf stars • e. supergiant stars

27. What type of objects are found in the area labeled C?      • a. nebulae and protostars • b. main sequence stars • c. red giant stars • d. white dwarf stars • e. supergiant stars     

28. What type of objects are found in the area labeled D? • a. nebulae and protostars • b. main sequence stars • c. red giant stars • d. white dwarf stars • e. supergiant stars

29. What is the bright band of stars running diagonally from the upper left to lower right corner in this picture? • a. the aurora borealis • b. a cosmic ray shower • c. a meteor trail • d. the Milky Way

30. What type of galaxy is shown in this picture? • a. irregular • b. spiral • c. elliptical

31. What type of object is believed to be at the centers of most galaxies? • a.quasar • b. supermassive black hole • c. dark matter • d. pulsar

32. The part of a shadow that is only partly illuminated; partial shadow. A. Umbra B. Penumbra

33. What are comets mostly made of? • ice and dust • rock • hydrogen • metal

34. What happens when a comet goes toward the sun? • Moves so that the tail is towards the sun. • Adds a layer. • Moves so that the tail is away from the sun.

35. When we observe distant galaxies we are observing • a. very young objects • b. very old objects • c. objects having the approximate age of the milky way • d. distant galaxies; no statement may be made about age