Astronomy college course/Unit 2 study guide

1. At 9am a new moon would be}

___ a) overhead

___ b) eastern horizon

___ c) high in western sky

___ d) below the western horizon

___ e) high in eastern sky

2. At noon a waning gibbous moon would be}

___ a) below the western horizon

___ b) high in western sky

___ c) western horizon

___ d) nadir

___ e) overhead

3. At 6pm a waxing crescent moon would be}

___ a) high in western sky

___ b) overhead

___ c) western horizon

___ d) nadir

___ e) eastern horizon

4. At 6pm a waning crescent moon would be}

___ a) western horizon

___ b) nadir

___ c) below the eastern horizon

___ d) below the western horizon

___ e) eastern horizon

5. At midnight a waning gibbous moon would be}

___ a) high in eastern sky

___ b) high in western sky

___ c) below the western horizon

___ d) eastern horizon

___ e) western horizon

6. At 3pm a full moon would be}

___ a) western horizon

___ b) high in eastern sky

___ c) nadir

___ d) below the eastern horizon

___ e) below the western horizon

7. At 6pm a waxing gibbous moon would be}

___ a) high in eastern sky

___ b) nadir

___ c) western horizon

___ d) below the western horizon

___ e) eastern horizon

8. At 9am a waxing crescent moon would be}

___ a) overhead

___ b) nadir

___ c) eastern horizon

___ d) below the western horizon

___ e) high in eastern sky

9. At 9pm a full moon would be}

___ a) eastern horizon

___ b) high in eastern sky

___ c) below the western horizon

___ d) nadir

___ e) overhead

10. At 9pm a third quarter moon would be}

___ a) below the western horizon

___ b) high in western sky

___ c) high in eastern sky

___ d) nadir

___ e) below the eastern horizon

11. ____ motion is in the usual direction, and _______ is motion that has temporarily reversed itself.

___ a) indirect; direct

___ b) retrograde; direct

___ c) direct; elliptical

___ d) direct; retrograde

___ e) elliptical; retrograde

12. Under what conditions would a planet not seem to rise in the east and set in the west?

___ a) if the planet is in elliptical motion

___ b) if the observer is near the north or south poles

___ c) if the planet is in retrograde motion

___ d) if the planet is in direct motion

___ e) if the observer is below the equator

13. When the faster moving Earth overtakes a slower planet outside Earth's orbit

___ a) tidal forces can be observed on Earth

___ b) two of these are true

___ c) all of these are true

___ d) tidal forces can be observed on the planet

___ e) retrograde motion occurs

14. Which planet spends more days in a given retrograde?

___ a) Mars

___ b) It depends on the season

___ c) Saturn

___ d) They are all equal

___ e) Earth

15. Which planet has more days between two consecutive retrogrades?

___ a) It depends on the season

___ b) They are all equal

___ c) Earth

___ d) Mars

___ e) Saturn

16. A planet that is very, very far from the Sun would be in retrograde for approximately ___ months.

___ a) 6

___ b) 3

___ c) 1

___ d) 24

___ e) 12

17. If a planet that is very, very far from the Sun begins a retrograde, how many months must pass before it begins the next retrograde?

___ a) 1

___ b) 24

___ c) 3

___ d) 6

___ e) 12

18. Planet comes from the Greek word for 'wanderer'.

___ a) true

___ b) false

19. We know that Galileo saw Neptune, but is not credited with its discovery because

___ a) it was too faint to be worth drawing

___ b) none of these are true

___ c) he never published his drawing

___ d) it was in a transition between retrograde and direct motion

___ e) he thought it was a moon of Saturn

20. Kepler began his career as a teacher of

___ a) astronomy

___ b) philosophy

___ c) mathematics

___ d) history

___ e) theology

21. Kepler is also known for his improvements to

___ a) the telescope

___ b) a perpetual motion machine

___ c) Ptolemy's star charts

___ d) the abacus

___ e) translations of the Bible

22. In Kepler's era, astronomy was usually considered a part of natural philosophy

___ a) true

___ b) false

23. In Kepler's era, astronomy was usually considered a part of mathematics

___ a) true

___ b) false

24. In Kepler's era, astronomy closely linked to astrology

___ a) true

___ b) false

25. In Kepler's era, physics (how and why things moved) was usually considered a part of natural philosophy

___ a) true

___ b) false

26. Kepler incorporated religious arguments and reasoning into his work

___ a) true

___ b) false

27. Kepler avoided religious arguments and reasoning in his work

___ a) true

___ b) false

28. How would one describe the status of Kepler's family when he was a child?

___ a) of noble birth, but in poverty

___ b) wealth and of noble birth

___ c) wealthy but not of noble birth

___ d) his father and grandfather were scientists

___ e) neither wealthy nor of noble birth

29. As a child, Kepler's interest in astronomy grew as a result of

___ a) a comet

___ b) a lunar eclipse

___ c) two of these

___ d) a solar eclipse

___ e) watching his uncle make a telescope

30. When Kepler's studies at the university were over, what he really wanted to do was

___ a) become a minister

___ b) visit Rome

___ c) work with Tycho

___ d) work with Newton

___ e) visit Athens

31. Which of the following is NOT associated with Kepler's Laws

___ a) planets farther from the Sun have longer orbital periods.

___ b) elliptical paths for the planets

___ c) circular motions with epicycles

___ d) planets speed up as they approach the sun

___ e) Earth orbits the sun

32. As a planet orbits the Sun, the Sun is situated at one focal point of the ellipse

___ a) true

___ b) false

33. As a planet orbits the Sun, the Sun is situated midway between the two focal points of the ellipse

___ a) true

___ b) false

34. Newton was able to use the motion of the Moon to calculate the universal constant of gravity, G

___ a) true

___ b) false

35. The force of (gravitational) attraction between you and a friend is small because neither of you possess significant mass

___ a) true

___ b) false

36. Cavendish finally measured G by carefully weighing the force between

___ a) two lead balls

___ b) Jupiter and moons

___ c) Earth and Sun

___ d) Sun and Moon

___ e) Earth and Moon

37.

horizontal crack

The horizontal crack along the center of figure is a

___ a) antipodal

___ b) propodal

___ c) meander

___ d) scarp

___ e) rille

38. Antipodal to Caloris Basin is

___ a) a silicon deposits

___ b) a water deposits

___ c) an iron/nickel deposit

___ d) a scarp

___ e) weird terrain

39. A volatile is a substance that

___ a) melts or evaporates at high temperature

___ b) reacts violently with water

___ c) reacts violently with acids

___ d) melts or evaporates at low temperature

___ e) reacts violently with oxygen

40. The four smaller inner planets, Mercury, Venus, Earth and Mars, also called the terrestrial planets, are primarily composed of ___ and ___.

___ a) carbon and oxygen

___ b) ice and gas

___ c) ice and rock

___ d) ice and water

___ e) metal and rock

41. If the universe is mostly hydrogen, why aren't terrestrial planets made of mostly hydrogen?

___ a) thermonuclear fusion in the protosun turned the hydrogen into helium

___ b) tidal forces from the Sun prevented accretion

___ c) tidal forces from Jupiter prevented accretion

___ d) These planets lie inside the frost line for hydrogen

___ e) tidal forces between the terrestrial planets prevented accretion

42. Mercury's atmosphere consists mostly of

___ a) carbon dioxide

___ b) nitrogen

___ c) oxygen

___ d) helium

___ e) hydrogen

43. In what sequence did Mercury's weird terrain and Caloris basin form?

___ a) The were formed at exactly the same time

___ b) The weird terrain was formed almost immediately after the Caloris basin

___ c) The weird terrain was formed approximately 2 billions years before the Caloris basin

___ d) The weird terrain was formed approximately 2 billions years after the Caloris basin

___ e) The weird terrain was formed a few millions years after the Caloris basin

44. Very far from the sun, the heliosphere

___ a) becomes the magnetosphere

___ b) becomes weaker than the interstellar wind

___ c) spins in the opposite direction

___ d) reverses direction

___ e) never ends

45. A volatile is a substance that

___ a) reacts violently with oxygen

___ b) reacts violently with water

___ c) reacts violently with acids

___ d) melts or evaporates at low temperature

___ e) melts or evaporates at high temperature

46. All planets lie within a nearly flat disc called the __________ plane

___ a) fissile

___ b) retrograde

___ c) ecliptic

___ d) interstellar

___ e) angular

47. The AU is

___ a) a measure of the brightness of a planet

___ b) the distance from the Sun to Earth

___ c) the distance from Earth to the Moon

___ d) the size of Oort's cloud

___ e) the most distant Kuiper object from the Sun

48. The Sun and Earth are about

___ a) 50 billion years old

___ b) 50 million years old

___ c) 500 million years old

___ d) 5 million years old

___ e) 5 billion years old

49. The universe is about

___ a) 1.5 billion years old

___ b) 15 billion years old

___ c) 15 million years old

___ d) 150 million years old

___ e) 150 billion years old

50. Roughly how much bigger is a gas planet than a terrestrial planet?

___ a) 3

___ b) 30

___ c) 300

___ d) 10

___ e) 100

51. Roughly how much bigger is a the Sun than a gas planet?

___ a) 30

___ b) 3

___ c) 10

___ d) 300

___ e) 100

52. According to Wikipedia, if all the mass of the asteroid belt were combined to one object, it's mass would _______ times less than Earth's mass.

___ a) 100

___ b) 1

___ c) 10

___ d) 10,000

___ e) 1,000

53.

planetary disk

In this hypothetical image of a sun-like star we see a bright band of dust that we on Earth call zodiacal light. It is due to sunlight reflecting off dust in the

___ a) Van Allen belt

___ b) Kuiper belt

___ c) ecliptic plane

___ d) magnetic sun's magnetic field

___ e) Oort Cloude

54. In planetary science, the frost line refers to a distance away from

___ a) the star in the middle

___ b) the south pole of a planet

___ c) ecliptic plane

___ d) either pole of a planet

___ e) the north pole of a planet

55. Oort's cloud was hypothesized to explain the source of

___ a) asteroids

___ b) comets

___ c) water inside the frost line

___ d) planets

___ e) water outside the frost line

56. According to Wikipedia _______ and ______ are referred to as volatiles.

___ a) electrons and protons

___ b) ices and gasses

___ c) asteroids and terrestrial planets

___ d) planets and moons

___ e) acids and bases

57. Which of the following list is properly ranked, starting with objects closest to the Sun?

___ a) Oort's cloud, Asteroid belt, Kuiper belt

___ b) Asteroid belt, Oort's cloud, Kuiper belt

___ c) Kuiper belt, Oort's cloud, Asteroid belt

___ d) Asteroid belt, Kuiper belt, Oort's cloud

___ e) Kuiper belt, Asteroid belt, Oort's cloud

58. When the sun turns into a red giant,

___ a) surface temperature increases; energy output decreases

___ b) The sun will not turn into a red giant

___ c) surface temperature decreases; energy output increases

___ d) surface temperature increases; energy output increases

___ e) surface temperature decreases; energy output decreases

59. In astrophysics, what is accretion?

___ a) the growth of a comet's tail as it comes close to the Sun

___ b) the growth of a massive object by gravitationally attracting more matter

___ c) the increase in temperature and pressure of a star as it collapses from its own gravity

___ d) the condensation of volatiles as a gas cools

___ e) the growth in size of a massive star as its outer atmosphere expands

60. Dwarf planets are defined as objects orbiting the Sun and smaller than planets, that?

___ a) lie in the asteroid belt

___ b) have been rounded by their own gravity

___ c) are too far from the Sun to be planets

___ d) possess an atmosphere

___ e) lack an atmosphere

61. Dwarf planets have no natural satellites,

___ a) true

___ b) false

62. Pluto is classified as

___ a) a natural satellite of Uranus

___ b) a natural satellite of Neptune

___ c) a dwarf planet with no natural satellites

___ d) a dwarf planet and a trans-Neptunian object.

___ e) an asteroid belt object

63. How many of the outer planets have rings?

___ a) 4

___ b) 2

___ c) 3

___ d) 1

64. Currently there are 7 billion people on Earth, if that ever increases to 10 billion people, for every person on Earth there will be ____ stars in the Milky Way galaxy.

___ a) 2

___ b) 20

___ c) 2000

___ d) 200

65. The revolution of Haley's comet around the Sun is nearly circular.

___ a) true

___ b) false

66. The revolution of Haley's comet around the Sun is opposite that of the 8 planets.

___ a) true

___ b) false

67. The frost line is situated approximately

___ a) 5 times as far from the Sun as the Earth is from the Sun

___ b) 10 times as far from the Earth as the Earth's surface is from its center

___ c) 5 times as far from the Earth as the Earth's surface is from its center

___ d) 10 times as far from the Sun as the Earth is from the Sun

1. At 9am a new moon would be}

- a) overhead

- b) eastern horizon

- c) high in western sky

- d) below the western horizon

+ e) high in eastern sky

2. At noon a waning gibbous moon would be}

+ a) below the western horizon

- b) high in western sky

- c) western horizon

- d) nadir

- e) overhead

3. At 6pm a waxing crescent moon would be}

+ a) high in western sky

- b) overhead

- c) western horizon

- d) nadir

- e) eastern horizon

4. At 6pm a waning crescent moon would be}

- a) western horizon

- b) nadir

- c) below the eastern horizon

+ d) below the western horizon

- e) eastern horizon

5. At midnight a waning gibbous moon would be}

+ a) high in eastern sky

- b) high in western sky

- c) below the western horizon

- d) eastern horizon

- e) western horizon

6. At 3pm a full moon would be}

- a) western horizon

- b) high in eastern sky

- c) nadir

+ d) below the eastern horizon

- e) below the western horizon

7. At 6pm a waxing gibbous moon would be}

+ a) high in eastern sky

- b) nadir

- c) western horizon

- d) below the western horizon

- e) eastern horizon

8. At 9am a waxing crescent moon would be}

- a) overhead

- b) nadir

+ c) eastern horizon

- d) below the western horizon

- e) high in eastern sky

9. At 9pm a full moon would be}

- a) eastern horizon

+ b) high in eastern sky

- c) below the western horizon

- d) nadir

- e) overhead

10. At 9pm a third quarter moon would be}

- a) below the western horizon

- b) high in western sky

- c) high in eastern sky

- d) nadir

+ e) below the eastern horizon

11. ____ motion is in the usual direction, and _______ is motion that has temporarily reversed itself.

- a) indirect; direct

- b) retrograde; direct

- c) direct; elliptical

+ d) direct; retrograde

- e) elliptical; retrograde

12. Under what conditions would a planet not seem to rise in the east and set in the west?

- a) if the planet is in elliptical motion

+ b) if the observer is near the north or south poles

- c) if the planet is in retrograde motion

- d) if the planet is in direct motion

- e) if the observer is below the equator

13. When the faster moving Earth overtakes a slower planet outside Earth's orbit

- a) tidal forces can be observed on Earth

- b) two of these are true

- c) all of these are true

- d) tidal forces can be observed on the planet

+ e) retrograde motion occurs

14. Which planet spends more days in a given retrograde?

- a) Mars

- b) It depends on the season

+ c) Saturn

- d) They are all equal

- e) Earth

15. Which planet has more days between two consecutive retrogrades?

- a) It depends on the season

- b) They are all equal

- c) Earth

+ d) Mars

- e) Saturn

16. A planet that is very, very far from the Sun would be in retrograde for approximately ___ months.

+ a) 6

- b) 3

- c) 1

- d) 24

- e) 12

17. If a planet that is very, very far from the Sun begins a retrograde, how many months must pass before it begins the next retrograde?

- a) 1

- b) 24

- c) 3

- d) 6

+ e) 12

18. Planet comes from the Greek word for 'wanderer'.

+ a) true

- b) false

19. We know that Galileo saw Neptune, but is not credited with its discovery because

- a) it was too faint to be worth drawing

- b) none of these are true

- c) he never published his drawing

+ d) it was in a transition between retrograde and direct motion

- e) he thought it was a moon of Saturn

20. Kepler began his career as a teacher of

- a) astronomy

- b) philosophy

+ c) mathematics

- d) history

- e) theology

21. Kepler is also known for his improvements to

+ a) the telescope

- b) a perpetual motion machine

- c) Ptolemy's star charts

- d) the abacus

- e) translations of the Bible

22. In Kepler's era, astronomy was usually considered a part of natural philosophy

- a) true

+ b) false

23. In Kepler's era, astronomy was usually considered a part of mathematics

+ a) true

- b) false

24. In Kepler's era, astronomy closely linked to astrology

+ a) true

- b) false

25. In Kepler's era, physics (how and why things moved) was usually considered a part of natural philosophy

+ a) true

- b) false

26. Kepler incorporated religious arguments and reasoning into his work

+ a) true

- b) false

27. Kepler avoided religious arguments and reasoning in his work

- a) true

+ b) false

28. How would one describe the status of Kepler's family when he was a child?

+ a) of noble birth, but in poverty

- b) wealth and of noble birth

- c) wealthy but not of noble birth

- d) his father and grandfather were scientists

- e) neither wealthy nor of noble birth

29. As a child, Kepler's interest in astronomy grew as a result of

- a) a comet

- b) a lunar eclipse

+ c) two of these

- d) a solar eclipse

- e) watching his uncle make a telescope

30. When Kepler's studies at the university were over, what he really wanted to do was

+ a) become a minister

- b) visit Rome

- c) work with Tycho

- d) work with Newton

- e) visit Athens

31. Which of the following is NOT associated with Kepler's Laws

- a) planets farther from the Sun have longer orbital periods.

- b) elliptical paths for the planets

+ c) circular motions with epicycles

- d) planets speed up as they approach the sun

- e) Earth orbits the sun

32. As a planet orbits the Sun, the Sun is situated at one focal point of the ellipse

+ a) true

- b) false

33. As a planet orbits the Sun, the Sun is situated midway between the two focal points of the ellipse

- a) true

+ b) false

34. Newton was able to use the motion of the Moon to calculate the universal constant of gravity, G

- a) true

+ b) false

35. The force of (gravitational) attraction between you and a friend is small because neither of you possess significant mass

+ a) true

- b) false

36. Cavendish finally measured G by carefully weighing the force between

+ a) two lead balls

- b) Jupiter and moons

- c) Earth and Sun

- d) Sun and Moon

- e) Earth and Moon

37.

horizontal crack

The horizontal crack along the center of figure is a

- a) antipodal

- b) propodal

- c) meander

+ d) scarp

- e) rille

38. Antipodal to Caloris Basin is

- a) a silicon deposits

- b) a water deposits

- c) an iron/nickel deposit

- d) a scarp

+ e) weird terrain

39. A volatile is a substance that

- a) melts or evaporates at high temperature

- b) reacts violently with water

- c) reacts violently with acids

+ d) melts or evaporates at low temperature

- e) reacts violently with oxygen

40. The four smaller inner planets, Mercury, Venus, Earth and Mars, also called the terrestrial planets, are primarily composed of ___ and ___.

- a) carbon and oxygen

- b) ice and gas

- c) ice and rock

- d) ice and water

+ e) metal and rock

41. If the universe is mostly hydrogen, why aren't terrestrial planets made of mostly hydrogen?

+ a) thermonuclear fusion in the protosun turned the hydrogen into helium

- b) tidal forces from the Sun prevented accretion

- c) tidal forces from Jupiter prevented accretion

- d) These planets lie inside the frost line for hydrogen

- e) tidal forces between the terrestrial planets prevented accretion

42. Mercury's atmosphere consists mostly of

- a) carbon dioxide

- b) nitrogen

- c) oxygen

- d) helium

+ e) hydrogen

43. In what sequence did Mercury's weird terrain and Caloris basin form?

- a) The were formed at exactly the same time

+ b) The weird terrain was formed almost immediately after the Caloris basin

- c) The weird terrain was formed approximately 2 billions years before the Caloris basin

- d) The weird terrain was formed approximately 2 billions years after the Caloris basin

- e) The weird terrain was formed a few millions years after the Caloris basin

44. Very far from the sun, the heliosphere

- a) becomes the magnetosphere

+ b) becomes weaker than the interstellar wind

- c) spins in the opposite direction

- d) reverses direction

- e) never ends

45. A volatile is a substance that

- a) reacts violently with oxygen

- b) reacts violently with water

- c) reacts violently with acids

+ d) melts or evaporates at low temperature

- e) melts or evaporates at high temperature

46. All planets lie within a nearly flat disc called the __________ plane

- a) fissile

- b) retrograde

+ c) ecliptic

- d) interstellar

- e) angular

47. The AU is

- a) a measure of the brightness of a planet

+ b) the distance from the Sun to Earth

- c) the distance from Earth to the Moon

- d) the size of Oort's cloud

- e) the most distant Kuiper object from the Sun

48. The Sun and Earth are about

- a) 50 billion years old

- b) 50 million years old

- c) 500 million years old

- d) 5 million years old

+ e) 5 billion years old

49. The universe is about

- a) 1.5 billion years old

+ b) 15 billion years old

- c) 15 million years old

- d) 150 million years old

- e) 150 billion years old

50. Roughly how much bigger is a gas planet than a terrestrial planet?

- a) 3

- b) 30

- c) 300

+ d) 10

- e) 100

51. Roughly how much bigger is a the Sun than a gas planet?

- a) 30

- b) 3

+ c) 10

- d) 300

- e) 100

52. According to Wikipedia, if all the mass of the asteroid belt were combined to one object, it's mass would _______ times less than Earth's mass.

- a) 100

- b) 1

- c) 10

- d) 10,000

+ e) 1,000

53.

planetary disk

In this hypothetical image of a sun-like star we see a bright band of dust that we on Earth call zodiacal light. It is due to sunlight reflecting off dust in the

- a) Van Allen belt

- b) Kuiper belt

+ c) ecliptic plane

- d) magnetic sun's magnetic field

- e) Oort Cloude

54. In planetary science, the frost line refers to a distance away from

+ a) the star in the middle

- b) the south pole of a planet

- c) ecliptic plane

- d) either pole of a planet

- e) the north pole of a planet

55. Oort's cloud was hypothesized to explain the source of

- a) asteroids

+ b) comets

- c) water inside the frost line

- d) planets

- e) water outside the frost line

56. According to Wikipedia _______ and ______ are referred to as volatiles.

- a) electrons and protons

+ b) ices and gasses

- c) asteroids and terrestrial planets

- d) planets and moons

- e) acids and bases

57. Which of the following list is properly ranked, starting with objects closest to the Sun?

- a) Oort's cloud, Asteroid belt, Kuiper belt

- b) Asteroid belt, Oort's cloud, Kuiper belt

- c) Kuiper belt, Oort's cloud, Asteroid belt

+ d) Asteroid belt, Kuiper belt, Oort's cloud

- e) Kuiper belt, Asteroid belt, Oort's cloud

58. When the sun turns into a red giant,

- a) surface temperature increases; energy output decreases

- b) The sun will not turn into a red giant

+ c) surface temperature decreases; energy output increases

- d) surface temperature increases; energy output increases

- e) surface temperature decreases; energy output decreases

59. In astrophysics, what is accretion?

- a) the growth of a comet's tail as it comes close to the Sun

+ b) the growth of a massive object by gravitationally attracting more matter

- c) the increase in temperature and pressure of a star as it collapses from its own gravity

- d) the condensation of volatiles as a gas cools

- e) the growth in size of a massive star as its outer atmosphere expands

60. Dwarf planets are defined as objects orbiting the Sun and smaller than planets, that?

- a) lie in the asteroid belt

+ b) have been rounded by their own gravity

- c) are too far from the Sun to be planets

- d) possess an atmosphere

- e) lack an atmosphere

61. Dwarf planets have no natural satellites,

- a) true

+ b) false

62. Pluto is classified as

- a) a natural satellite of Uranus

- b) a natural satellite of Neptune

- c) a dwarf planet with no natural satellites

+ d) a dwarf planet and a trans-Neptunian object.

- e) an asteroid belt object

63. How many of the outer planets have rings?

+ a) 4

- b) 2

- c) 3

- d) 1

64. Currently there are 7 billion people on Earth, if that ever increases to 10 billion people, for every person on Earth there will be ____ stars in the Milky Way galaxy.

- a) 2

+ b) 20

- c) 2000

- d) 200

65. The revolution of Haley's comet around the Sun is nearly circular.

- a) true

+ b) false

66. The revolution of Haley's comet around the Sun is opposite that of the 8 planets.

+ a) true

- b) false

67. The frost line is situated approximately

+ a) 5 times as far from the Sun as the Earth is from the Sun

- b) 10 times as far from the Earth as the Earth's surface is from its center

- c) 5 times as far from the Earth as the Earth's surface is from its center

- d) 10 times as far from the Sun as the Earth is from the Sun