ASTRONOMY COURSE 1010

TEST 1

NOTE: Use only a Number 2 pencil. If you make a mistake, be sure you erase completely. Also, if you choose "E" on any of the questions, think about it one more time.

1. The scientific method
   1. is based on observations, which are often called the "facts" of science
   2. uses theories to explain the observations
   3. is at its best when making risky predictions
   4. all of the above
   5. is no longer useful because everything has been discovered
2. "Falsification" refers to the possibility that a scientific theory
   1. is based on false assumptions
   2. might use false logic to deduce erroneous conclusions
   3. might have faulty equipment used in the experiment
   4. can be proven false by its predictions failing
   5. can be used falsely to sell toothpaste
3. The speed of light is 3 x 10⁸ m/sec. That is a shorthand notation for
   1. 3,000,000.00 m/sec
   2. 300,000,000 m/sec
   3. 3.00000000 m/sec
   4. 38 m/sec
   5. The speed of light has never been measured.
4. "Centi" is a prefix meaning
   1. 1/100th
   2. 1/1000th
   3. 100
   4. 1000
   5. Italian for "tiny money," as in "I don'ti have a centi."
5. The projection of the earth's axis of rotation onto the sky is the
   1. celestial equator
   2. zenith
   3. ecliptic
   4. celestial pole
   5. The earth is not rotating.
6. The point directly overhead at any time is
   1. celestial equator
   2. zenith
   3. ecliptic
   4. celestial pole
   5. How could I know? I have never looked up.
7. The projection of the plane of the sun's apparent path on the sky is
   1. celestial equator
   2. zenith
   3. ecliptic
   4. celestial pole
   5. The sun never appears to move in the sky.
8. The North Star is always in the north because
   1. it is near the North celestial pole
   2. it always rises due North
   3. it always sets due North
   4. it attracts the compass needle
   5. Polaris missiles are pointed North.
9. When the sun crosses the celestial equator on or about March 21, it is the spring
   1. solstice
   2. equinox
   3. Stonehenge
   4. zodiac
   5. Egg Balancing Fiesta in Vernal, Utah
10. The constellations are
    1. figures in the stars which have no practical use today.
    2. figures in the stars originated by the ancient Greeks about 300 B.C.
    3. figures in the stars originating over 1,000 years before the ancient Greeks.
    4. figures in the stars originating over 2,000 years before the ancient Greeks.
    5. stupid pictures drawn by stupid shepherds.
11. The two Big Dipper pointer stars can be used to
    1. tell time
    2. find the North Star
    3. approximate 5° of angular separation
    4. all of the above
    5. prove that the ancients had no idea what a bear looks like

    
    

12. We add a leap day to February every 4 years to
    1. keep the spring equinox about March 20-21
    2. approximate the solar year of 365.24 days
    3. reinforce an old superstition about April Fool's Day
    4. a and b
    5. none of the above; calendars are not astronomical
13. The Hebrew lunisolar calendar
    1. uses the sun to measure years and the moon for months
    2. uses only the sun
    3. inserts both extra leap days and leap months
    4. a and c
    5. could never be useful because it sometimes has 13 months
14. The "Old Style" calendar used in England before 1751 was unusual because it began the year
    1. on March 25.
    2. on Dec. 25.
    3. at the summer solstice, dating back to Stonehenge times.
    4. at the winter equinox, dating back to Roman times.
    5. it began the year with the Yule Time Eggnog Happy Hour.
15. The summer is warmer than the winter because
    1. the earth is nearer the sun in the summer
    2. the rays of the sun are more nearly vertical in the summer
    3. the days are longer in the summer
    4. both b and c
    5. both a and c
16. Soltice refers to the time when the sun
    1. seems to "stand still" in its annual trek along the horizon
    2. enters the northern sky on the first day of spring
    3. appears to be directly overhead
    4. sets due west
    5. delayed going down on the Long Day of Joshua
17. Seasons are caused by
    1. the eccentricity of the solar orbit
    2. the earth getting nearer and farther away from the sun
    3. the 23.5° tilt of the earth's axis
    4. the precession of the equinoxes
    5. presidential decree
18. The line that separates the sea from the sky is called the
    1. zodiac
    2. horizon
    3. celestial equator
    4. ecliptic
    5. deep sea fishing line
19. The set of 12 constellations around the ecliptic in which the planets are found is called
    1. zodiac
    2. horizon
    3. ecliptic
    4. equator
    5. house of the rising sun
20. If the moon completely covers the sun, it is a ___________ eclipse.
    1. total lunar
    2. total solar
    3. either lunar or solar
    4. annual solar
    5. the moon is way too small to ever appear to cover the sun.
21. Even though solar eclipses occur more often than lunar eclipses, why is it more likely that you will see a lunar eclipse?
    1. it is easier to see eclipses at night
    2. a lunar eclipse is visible for only a small region of earth
    3. a solar eclipse is visible for only a small region of the earth
    4. lunar eclipses only occur at a new moon
    5. lunatics can only see lunar eclipses
22. A circle is divided into ____ equal parts, with each part being one degree.
    1. 24
    2. 60
    3. 360
    4. 365
    5. degrees measure temperature, not circles
23. Dispersion refers to the fact that light
    1. bends as it goes through matter
    2. bends more going through matter for blue than for red
    3. bends going around corners
    4. bends the same for light particles as matter particles
    5. spreads out to the four winds
24. The planets motion against the starry background is such that
    1. it is normally from west to east
    2. it is normally from east to west
    3. it sometimes reverses the apparent direction of motion
    4. a and c
    5. there's no telling which was a "wanderer" might go
25. Retrograde motion of planets refers to the fact that
    1. Mercury and Venus sometimes appear to reverse phases
    2. the outer planets seem to loop backwards as the earth passes them in orbit
    3. the inner planets appear to stand still at heliacal rising
    4. the outer planets as passed by the asteroid
    5. the planets reverse course when necessary to avoid collisions
26. Aristotle and after him Ptolemy held that the center of the universe is the
    1. Sun
    2. Milky Way galaxy
    3. Earth
    4. Venus
    5. Heart of Darkness, known today as a "Black Hole"
27. The approximate size and shape of the earth was known as early as
    1. before the time of Christ
    2. three centuries after the birth of Christ
    3. since the time of Charlemagne
    4. only after the 16th century
    5. the size of the earth is still virtually unknown
28. Seen from the northern latitudes, the star Polaris
    1. is never above the horizon during the daylight hours
    2. always sets directly in the West
    3. is always above the northern horizon
    4. is never visible in winter
    5. is known in Alaska as the Polar Bear's Claw
29. The celestial equator
    1. passes equally through all the zodiac constellations
    2. is 90 degrees away from the north celestial pole
    3. coincides with the ecliptic
    4. passes through the zenith at the equinoxes
    5. is known as the Hula Hoop of the Heavens
30. An observer on the earth's equator would find
    1. Polaris directly overhead
    2. Polaris 40 degrees above the northern horizon
    3. the celestial equator running around the horizon
    4. the celestial equator passing overhead
    5. that it is impossible to ever see the sky because of rain
31. Navigators can find their latitude by observing the angle between
    1. the North celestial pole and the horizon
    2. the celestial equator and the North celestial pole
    3. the celestial poles
    4. the zenith and the horizon
    5. the stars are of no use to find latitude at sea because of wave motion
32. A Greek who tried to measure stellar parallax to
    1. Aristotle
    2. Eusebius
    3. Eratosthenes
    4. Pythagoras
    5. Dukakis
33. Who is famous for the scheme in which the earth is the center of the universe and the planets, moon, and sun are moving on circles (epicycles) whose centers are moving on circles?
    1. Copernicus
    2. Aristotle
    3. Philolaus
    4. Ptolemy
    5. Hartmann

    
    

34. The shift in the apparent position of a star due to the earth's motion is termed the star's
    1. terminator
    2. parallax
    3. deferent
    4. phase
    5. shiftiness
35. Precession was discovered by
    1. Hipparchus
    2. Eratosthenes
    3. Thales of Miletus
    4. Aristotle
    5. accident
36. Bode's Rule is that the planets
    1. appear to be spaced randomly
    2. appear to be spaced according to a mathematical rule
    3. all appear to orbit the sun in the same direction
    4. all appear to orbit the sun in nearly circular orbits
    5. all appear to be the abode of the rulers of the sky
37. The equinoxes precess at a rate of
    1. 1° every year
    2. 1° every 12 years
    3. 1° every 24 years
    4. 1° every 72 years
    5. a top slowing down
38. Eratosthenes is best known for
    1. showing the moon was round
    2. showing the moon was smaller than the earth
    3. calculating the size of the earth
    4. explaining precession
    5. having the hardest name to pronounce
39. All things fall at the same rate
    1. as we witness everyday
    2. in a vacuum where air resistance doesn't interfere
    3. due to Galileo's law of gravity
    4. as long as one of them isn't a feather
    5. if synchronized with the stock market
40. Match a description with the astronomer: Tycho Brahe
    1. was the first astronomer to use a telescope to observe the phases of Venus
    2. was famous for his accurate observations of positions of planets; did not use a telescope
    3. was the first to discover that the orbits of the planets were ellipses.
    4. was the first to successfully find physical laws that explain both terrestrial and celestial motion.
    5. made the first accurate measurements of the earth's size using a well near Syene and measurements near Alexandria.
41. Match a description with the astronomer: Johannes Kepler
    1. was the first astronomer to use a telescope to observe the phases of Venus
    2. was famous for his accurate observations of positions of planets; did not use a telescope
    3. was the first to discover that the orbits of the planets were ellipses.
    4. was the first to successfully find physical laws that explain both terrestrial and celestial motion.
    5. made the first accurate measurements of the earth's size using a well near Syene and measurements near Alexandria.
42. Match a description with the astronomer: Isaac Newton
    1. was the first astronomer to use a telescope to observe the phases of Venus
    2. was famous for his accurate observations of positions of planets; did not use a telescope
    3. was the first to discover that the orbits of the planets were ellipses.
    4. was the first to successfully find physical laws that explain motion.
    5. made the first accurate measurements of the earth's size.
43. Kepler's 2nd law says, essentially,
    1. force equals mass time acceleration
    2. the square of the period is proportional to the cube of the semi-major axis
    3. the orbits of the planets are ellipses with the sun at one focus
    4. the line from the planet to the sun sweeps out equal area in equal time
    5. cake are square, pie are round
44. The AU (astronomical unit) is
    1. the radius of the Moon's orbit in the epicycle model
    2. an average distance from the earth to the sun
    3. a measure of the gravitational attraction between two planets
    4. the most recently discovered moon of Jupiter
    5. the Asteroid Unknown, the holy grail of comet seekers
45. Newton's 1st law states, essentially, that
    1. force equals mass times acceleration
    2. the line from the planet to the sun sweeps out equal area in equal time
    3. orbits are ellipses with the sun at one focus
    4. in the absence of an outside force a body at rest remains at rest
    5. area equals one half the base times the height
46. "The best theory is the simplest theory" is a brief statement of
    1. Copernicus' theory
    2. Kepler's 3rd law
    3. Kepler's 4th law
    4. Occam's razor
    5. a pretty silly way to do science
47. Kepler's first law states, essentially, that
    1. bodies stay in uniform motion unless acted upon by an outside force
    2. gravitational attraction is inversely proportional to the distance squared
    3. the orbits of planets are ellipses
    4. force is proportional to mass time acceleration
    5. the Golden Rule: He who has the gold makes the rules.
48. What is the period of a comet with a semimajor axis of 4 a.u.?
    1. 4 years
    2. 8 years
    3. 16 years
    4. 32 years
    5. Comet's friends are Cupid, Donner and Blitzen
49. If r is the distance between two bodies, the gravitational force between them is
    1. directly proportional to r
    2. directly proportional to r
    3. inversely proportional to r
    4. inversely proportional to r
    5. independent of r
50. A simple indication that the moon is closer to the earth than the sun is that
    1. it always faces us
    2. it has crescent phases
    3. it is "full" once a month
    4. lunar eclipses occasionally occur
    5. the green smell is easy to detect
51. A simple indication that the earth is round is that
    1. the earth's shadow is round as seen in a lunar eclipse
    2. the earth's shadow is round as seen in the moon's phases
    3. the angle from the earth to the sun implies spherical trig is necessary
    4. the sun rises at different locations on the eastern horizon
    5. members of the Flat Earth Society know that this is all hokum
52. Sometimes it is easy to detect that the moon is drawn incorrectly in artwork because
    1. it is shown as full at midnight
    2. it is shown as a crescent in the evening near the horizon
    3. it is shown at night with the crescent's bright side facing up
    4. it is shown as being round
    5. it looks like God's fingernail
53. The weight of a body is
    1. same as the mass
    2. the gravitational force by which the earth pulls a body
    3. the same on all planets
    4. a measure of the amount of matter it contains
    5. always increasing, even when it is on a diet
54. Mass is a property of matter that
    1. determines a body's acceleration when a force is applied
    2. is in Newton's equation F = ma
    3. is in Newton's equation for it's gravitational attraction
    4. all of the above
    5. put the "mas" into Christmas
55. When a planet is farthest from the sun, it travels
    1. fastest
    2. slowest
    3. the same speed as throughout the orbit
    4. at a rate proportional to its temperature
    5. it stops for gas
56. "Wavelength" refers to
    1. the distance of the wave from top to bottom
    2. the distance between wave crests
    3. the length of time between vibrations
    4. the lengh of time before the wave dies down
    5. the length of time for the entire stadium can continue doing the "wave"
57. The "frequency" of a wave refers to
    1. the distance between vibrations
    2. the speed of the wave's crests
    3. how often the wave is emitted
    4. the number of vibrations per second
    5. waves are never frequent
58. All of the following are examples of electomagnetic radiation (light), except for
    1. gamma rays and X-rays
    2. alpha rays and beta rays
    3. microwaves
    4. ultraviolet and infrared light
    5. AM and FM radio
59. The relationship of speed, wavelength and frequency is that
    1. speed = wavelength x frequency
    2. wavelength = speed x frequency
    3. frequency = wavelength x speed
    4. frequency = wavelength x speed
    5. they are not related because the theory of relativity hadn't been invented yet
60. The speed of light
    1. is about one foot per nanosecond
    2. was first measured by timing the eclipses of Jupiter's moons
    3. is so fast that light goes 7 times the circumference of the earth per second
    4. all of the above
    5. is slower than the speed of dark
61. Which is not a color of the rainbow?
    1. Orange
    2. Green
    3. Brown
    4. Blue
    5. Red
62. Gamma rays have greater ___________ than radio waves
    1. wavelength
    2. speed
    3. density
    4. energy
    5. Greekness
63. The dark lines in a spectrum are known as ______ lines.
    1. absorption
    2. continuous
    3. missing
    4. hot
    5. fishing
64. The Doppler effect means that
    1. an object travelling away from you has blue-shifted light
    2. an object travelling away from you has red-shifted light
    3. an object travelling away from you has green-shifted light
    4. an object travelling away from you has no shift in the wavelength
    5. an object travelling away from you cannot emit light
65. Wien's law states:
    1. the cooler an object, the bluer the radiation it emits
    2. the hotter an object, the bluer the radiation it emits
    3. the hotter the object, the redder the radiation it emits
    4. temperature is proportional to the emitted energy
    5. the wiener will fall out of the bun if possible
66. The eye can detect electromagnetic radiation in the wavelength band between
    1. 400 to 700 nm
    2. 40,000 to 70,000 nm
    3. 400 to 7,000 nm
    4. 4 to 7 nm
    5. the eye can only see light, not electromagnetic radiation
67. Infrared astronomy can sometimes be done from mountain tops because infrared
    1. sources are very bright
    2. photons are very energetic
    3. radiation is absorbed at lower altitudes in the earth's atmosphere
    4. telescopes are heavy
    5. has to be drawn with an invisible crayon
68. A cloud of gas located directly between a light source and the observer will produce
    1. a continuous spectrum
    2. an absorption spectrum
    3. an atomic emission spectrum
    4. a molecular emission spectrum
    5. a spectacular, speculative spectrum
69. The bending of light as it passes an edge is called
    1. reflection
    2. frequency
    3. diffraction
    4. wavelength
    5. light never bends around corners
70. Suppose you lived on the moon and could see the earth. It would set below your horizon
    1. once in 24 hours
    2. every 27 1/2 days
    3. every 29 1/2 days
    4. never
    5. the earth could never be visible from the moon

    
    

71. Because of the gravitational attraction of the moon on the earth,
    1. the ocean has tides
    2. the moon's crater's are crumbling
    3. the earth's rotation is slowing due to frictional losses from tides
    4. a and c
    5. lunatics are mostly on welfare
72. What does a refractor telescope use as its principal light-gatherer?
    1. a lens
    2. a mirror
    3. a long tube
    4. a high powered eyepiece
    5. a flashlight
73. The measure of a telescope's ability to distinguish the angular separation of two objects is its
    1. resolution
    2. revolution
    3. refraction
    4. dispersion
    5. discrimination, but that is now illegal
74. Most large telescopes are reflectors because
    1. mirrors don't have have chromatic aberration
    2. the principal objective can be supported more easily
    3. they are less expensive
    4. all of the above
    5. most large telescopes are refractors
75. A good pair of binoculars is often better to own that a small telescope because
    1. They have just as much light gathering power
    2. Most objects in the sky are dim, not small
    3. They don't invert the image
    4. All of the above
    5. They aren't better because they make things look too close