Astronomy At Play in the Cosmos Ch. 4 – Flashcards

Unlock all answers in this set

Unlock answers
question
matter
answer
any substance made up of particles that mass that occupies space
question
spectrograph
answer
a device for separating light from a source into its component wavelengths and measuring the energy at each wavelength
question
wavelength
answer
the distance between successive peaks to troughs of a wave
question
frequency
answer
the number of peaks or troughs of a wave that pass a point in space in a single second
question
amplitude
answer
a measure of the wave's strength
question
electromagnetic radiation
answer
oscillating electric and magnetic fields traveling through space
question
visible light
answer
the form of light to which the human eye responds ranging from 400 to 700 nm
question
electromagnetic spectrum
answer
the full range of electromagnetic radiation at different wavelengths running from gamma rays (very short) to radio waves (very long)
question
radio wave
answer
an electromagnetic wave with a wavelength great than 0.1 meter
question
microwave
answer
the shortest wavelength radio wave, with a wavelength of 1 millimeter to about 0.1 meter
question
infrared wave
answer
an electromagnet wave with a wavelength of 700 nanometers to 1 millimeter, just longer than those of visible light
question
ultraviolet wave
answer
an electromagnetic wave with a wavelength of 10-400 nanometers, just short of visible light
question
x-ray
answer
an electromagnetic wave with a wavelength between 10^-11 and 10^-8 meter
question
gamma ray
answer
a high energy electromagnetic wave with a wavelength leas than 10^-11 meter
question
refraction
answer
the bending of light as it passes between two media, such as water and air
question
spectrum (pl. spectra)
answer
the distribution of light intensity versus wavelength (or frequency)
question
emission line
answer
a bright line at a particular wavelength in a spectrum. specific patterns of emission lines indicate the presence of a specific elect in the source
question
absorption line
answer
a dark line in a continuous spectrum. specific patterns of absorption lines in a spectrum indicate a specific element in the soutce
question
energy
answer
the ability to preform work. energy comes in many forms, such as kinetic, thermal, gravitational, and electromagnetic
question
kinetic energy
answer
energy that is due to an object's bulk motion
question
gravitational potential energy
answer
energy that an object possesses because of its position in a gravitational field
question
thermal ebergy
answer
energy that is due to random motions pf atoms
question
blackbody radiation
answer
electromagnetic radiation from a dense, opaque body, whose spectrum depends only on the temperature of the body
question
photon
answer
a particle of light
question
Wein's Law
answer
the mathematical relation between a blackbody's temperature and the wavelength at which it radiates with peak intensity
question
luminosity
answer
the total energy output per time of light source
question
Stefan-Boltzmann Law
answer
the mathematical relationship between a blackbody's luminosity and its surface area and temperature
question
nebula
answer
an interstellar cloud of dust, hydrogen, helium, and other ionized gasses
question
quantum mechanics or quantum physics
answer
a branch of physics dealing with physical phenomena at the level of molecular, atomic, and subatomic levels
question
nucleus
answer
the dense region at the center of an atom consisting of protons and neutrons
question
neutron
answer
a subatomic particle with no electric charge within an atomic nucleus
question
proton
answer
a subatomic particle with a positive electric charge
question
electron
answer
a subatomic particle with a negative electric charge
question
Bohr atom
answer
a model of the atom, devised by Niels Bohr, in which electrons in discrete orbits surround positively charged nucleus. electron "jumps" between the discrete orbits determine omission or absorption of light
question
emission
answer
the release of a photon of a specific wavelength when an electron jumps from a higher to lower energy level
question
ground state
answer
the lowest energy state within an atom
question
excited state
answer
any energy state within an atom that is higher than the ground state.
question
absorption
answer
the capture of a photon of a specific wavelength, causing an electron to jump from a lower to a higher energy level
question
energy level
answer
any one of the certain discrete values of orbital energy possible for an atom
question
Lymann series
answer
emission or absorption lines of the hydrogen atom as an electron moves between the ground state and excited states
question
Balmer Series
answer
emission or absorption lines of the hydrogen atom as an electron moves between the first excited state and higher energy states
question
Doppler shift
answer
a change in wavelength that results because either a wave source or an observer moves relative to the other
question
redshift
answer
an increase in the wavelength of light that results when the source of the light moves away from the observer or the observer moves away from the light source
question
blueshift
answer
a decrese in the wavelength of light the results when the source of light moves towards the observer or the observer moves closer to the light source.
question
standard candle
answer
an object with known luminosity that can be used to determine distance
question
aperature
answer
the diameter of a telescope's main light-collecting lens or mirror
question
angular resolutoin
answer
a measure of the ability of a telescope to separate or distinguish features in a distant object
question
magnification
answer
the ability of a telescope to enlarge appearances of an image
question
refractor
answer
an optical telescope that uses a lens to collect light and form an image
question
objective
answer
in a refarator telescope, the largest lens that gathers light from the object being observed and focuses the light rays to form an image
question
eyepeice
answer
the small lens of a telescope through which the observer looks through
question
chromatic aberration
answer
the failure of a lens to focus all colors to the same point
question
reflector
answer
an optical telescope that uses curved mirrors to collect light and form an image
question
transmission
answer
the passing of light through matter without being absorbed
question
opacity
answer
the degree to which light being absorbed when passing through a material
question
turbulence
answer
the random jostling motion of moving air
question
adaptive optics
answer
a telescope technology in which mirror segments are rapidly adjusted to account for atmospheric turbulence and produce higher resolution images
question
interferometry
answer
the technique of combining the signal from many smaller telescopes to achieve the resolving power of a larger one
Get an explanation on any task
Get unstuck with the help of our AI assistant in seconds
New