Chapters 14,15,16 – Flashcards

On the video regarding the big bang, how soon after the big bang was the "background microwave radiation" we see today present? -380,000 years -2.5 million years -200 million years -1.6 billion years

On the video regarding a "light year" how far away is the nearest star? -4 light years -80 light years -150 light years -6000 light years

On the video regarding stellar evolution, what atom can the biggest stars fuse into? -Hydrogen -Helium -Magnesium -Iron

Which of the following is evidence for the existence of "dark matter" in the universe? -The rate of expansion of the universe is speeding up. -Stars eventually use up their fuel and stop shining. -The outlying stars in a galaxy appear to rotate more rapidly than expected. -The background temperature of the universe is 3K

Red giants are enormously bright because they are extremely hot. -True -False

Stonehenge is an ancient observatory built in -ancient Babylon. -England. -the Euphrates river valley. -Greece.

About how old is the universe? -6.0 billion years -10.5 billion years -13.7 billion years -20 billion years

The greater the apparent magnitude, the brighter the star. -True -False

A light-year is a measure of astronomical distance. True False

Compared to magnitude 1 star, a star with a magnitude of 2 is -more than twice as bright. -less than half as bright. -ten times as bright. -less than one tenth as bright.

If the density of the universe is less than a critical value, then -it might eventually stop expanding. -it might continue expanding forever. -it could expand to a fixed size and remain. -there's probably less dark matter than luminous.

Which type of star has the shortest life span? -large, very massive -small, not very massive -one on the main sequence -a star about the size of our Sun

Nuclear fusion reactions occur in what part of a star? core radiation zone convection zone All of the above.

The Milky Way galaxy is spiral. elliptical. globular. spherical.

A protostar is an accumulation of gases in outer space that will become a star. True False

The eventual fate of our Sun is to become a neutron star. a supernova. a white dwarf. a black hole.

Which of the following star colors has the highest temperature? blue white yellow red

The difference in brightness between two stars is related to the amount of light and energy produced by the stars. relative size of the stars. distance to the stars. All of the above.

On the short video regarding galaxies, what number of stars did they say our own Milky Way Galaxy contained? 100 million stars 500 million stars 200 billion stars 600 billion stars

In the video regarding "star classification" our Sun's classification was shown to be a ____. O5II E2I G2V X5IV

Most of the mass of the solar system is found in the terrestrial planets. the gas giants. the comets and asteroids. the Sun.

One of the following planets is denser than the others Saturn. Jupiter. Uranus. Earth.

A comet's tail always trails behind it throughout its journey through the solar system. True False

Strong evidence about former existing life has been found on Mars. Venus. meteorites. None of the above.

The Sun has hundreds of times more mass than all the rest of the solar system. True False

The elements heavier than iron in Earth were formed by the supernova explosions of other stars. True False

Earth, other planets, and the rest of the solar system formed at the same time as the rest of the stars in the galaxy. millions of years ago from elements that have always existed. from a giant nebula millions of years ago. billions of years ago from elements created in previously existing stars.

The surface temperature of Venus is so high because it is so much closer to the Sun. its day is so long that the side facing the Sun gets very hot. it has many active volcanoes that heat up the atmosphere. its atmosphere traps much of the incoming solar energy.

Which of the following about Jupiter is not true? Jupiter is mostly made of light elements like hydrogen and helium. Much of the planet is composed of hydrogen compressed so greatly that it is liquid. The colored bands in Jupiter's atmosphere are believed to result from atmospheric convection. Because Jupiter is mostly hydrogen, it is only slightly more massive than Earth.

Which of the following is true about the surface of Mars? There are numerous active volcanoes. It is much too cold for liquid water to exist. The polar ice caps are frozen water. The greenish areas are due to low, scrubby vegetation.

A dwarf planet of the solar system is Ceres. Pluto. Eris. All of the above.

Photographs of the surface of Mars provides evidence that liquid water once flowed on its surface. True False

The asteroids forming a belt between the orbits of Mars and Jupiter were prevented from forming a planet by the strong gravitational field of Jupiter. True False

Which of the following statements about comets is not true? Comets are thought to be dirty snowballs. The birthplace of comets is a cloud of icy, dusty aggregates beyond the solar system. Most comets have elliptical orbits with periods around one hundred years. The tail of a comet consists of dust and evaporated ices.

The atmosphere of Venus is predominantly carbon dioxide. nitrogen. methane. water vapor.

The International Astronomical Union (IAU) is the governing authority over names of celestial bodies. True False

It is impossible to theorize about the formation of the solar system because no other planetary systems can be observed. True False

Which of the following is NOT a name of a spacecraft that was sent to Mars? Curiosity Opportunity Spirit Messenger

On the video regarding the Mars rovers, why was Spirit called the "bad sister?" Spirit stopped calling home Spirit landed far from her designated landing spot Spirit got stuck in a small crater Spirit's solar cells did not work at 100%

On the video regarding Mars rovers, what does NASA do to spacecraft on their way to Mars to give them more stability? The spin the spacecraft They put the spacecraft in a hibernation mode They turn the spacecraft away from the Sun They use lasers to continuously orient the spacecraft

Evidence that Earth is rotating is provided by the motion of a pendulum. seasonal climactic changes. the varying solar day. the movement of the constellations.

On the Summer Solstice, the Sun rises south of due east, and sets south of due west. True False

In the time 9:00 AM, the "AM" means after morning. after the meridian. astronomical motion. before the meridian.

A person traveling westward across the International Date Line gains a day. True False

A lunar eclipse can only occur during which phase of the Moon? full 1st quarter last quarter new

The average temperature of Earth is slightly lower in January because then Earth is at its greatest distance from the Sun. True False

An apparent solar day is the interval between two consecutive solar noons. slightly longer than a sidereal day. rarely exactly 24 hours long. All of the above.

The path of a plane flying due north from a spot on the equator would appear to continue due north. curve to the east. curve to the west. form an S-shaped curve.

During which phase of the Moon would we most likely see a solar eclipse? full first quarter last quarter new

The slow wobble of Earth's axis is called Coriolis. solstice. perigee. precession.

The closest approach the Moon makes with the Earth is called apogee. True False

For the last 3 billion years the surface of the Moon has been undergoing cratering from intense meteorite bombardment. experiencing widespread lava flows from the interior. experiencing both heavy cratering and widespread lava flows. relatively quiet.

If your favorite constellation rose at 8:00 PM one night, when would it rise two weeks later? at 8:00 PM around 7:00 PM around 9:00 PM it depends on the constellation

South of the Antarctic Circle, the Sun appears directly overhead only once a year. directly overhead twice yearly. above the horizon all day at least once during December. above the horizon all day at least once during June.

The findings from the Apollo space missions to the Moon support the idea that the Moon formed from the impact of Earth with a very large object. True False

North of the Tropic of Cancer, the Sun appears directly overhead at noon never. daily. twice a year, at the equinoxes. twice a year, at the solstices.

The position of a spot on the floor made by a sunbeam traces out a "figure eight" pattern over the course of a year. True False

The Julian calendar adjusted for the fact that Earth's year was not exactly 365 days by adding a day every fourth year. True False

Neap tides result when the Moon is aligned with the Sun and Earth. full. new. in a quarter phase.

Remnants of asteroids or comets that survive the trip through Earth's atmosphere to strike the surface are called meteors meteorites meteoroids "shooting stars"

Which of the following statements about the length of a planet's day is true? The closer the planet is to the Sun, the shorter is its day. The more massive the planet, the longer its day. The four gas giants barely rotate at all. None of the above.

Venus, the sister planet to Earth, has an atmosphere whose composition is similar to that of Earth. True False

Which of the following planets has a length of day most similar to Earths? Mercury Mars Venus Jupiter

Which one of the following planets does not belong with the others? Mars Jupiter Mercury Venus

In the video regarding the Mars rovers, what is the speaker's favorite video taken on Mars? A video of a shooting star A video of the sunset A video of the 2 Martian moons crossing overhead A video of rain seen off in the distance

The temperature on the surface of Venus is hot enough to melt lead. True False

It is known that if there is sufficient dark matter in the universe, then the universe will eventually stop its expansion. True False

When a massive star exhausts its supply of hydrogen fuel, it becomes a supernova. True False

According to the video on a "light year," you can't look in the far reaches of space without doing what? Seeing the warping of space time. Looking back in time. Understanding the universe is very big. Seeing the blackness of space.

The expected life span of a star the size of the Sun is 10 billion years. 1 billion years. 100 million years. 10 million years.

On the video regarding spectral evolution, to what planet's orbit will our Sun eventually expand out to? Mercury Venus Earth Mars

On the short video of galaxies, who was the scientist who used a telescope to find that some stars were actually galaxies? Edmond Halley Edwin Hubble Galileo Galilei Isaac Newton

The location of the celestial meridian is determined by your location. True False

The absolute magnitude considers the brightness of a star when at a standard distance. True False

In which part of a newborn star does the fusion reaction occur? the core. the radiation zone. the convection zone. in all parts of the star.

Nearby stars appear to move ____ relative to Polaris. clockwise counter-clockwise straight by in looping circles

As viewed from space above the North Pole, Earth rotates clockwise. True False

When does the equator get the most sunlight? (Mark all answers that apply) Spring Summer Autumn Winter

We always see the same side of the Moon because the Moon doesn't rotate. the Moon's periods of rotation and revolution are the same. the Moon's orbit is circular. the period of rotation of both Earth and the Moon is the same.

The axis of Earth's rotation will not always point towards Polaris due to precession. True False

What is unique about the spring and autumn equinoxes? The Sun is directly overhead at the poles. The Earth moves fastest in its orbit. Everyone on Earth gets 12 hours of day and nighttime. No high tides exist in the northern hemisphere.

How frequently does the Sun appear directly overhead in Mexico City (? 20? N latitude)? daily once a year twice a year four times a year

The fact that there are seasons on Earth is largely due to the tilt of Earth's axis. the changing distance of Earth from the Sun during its orbit. the precession of Earth's axis of rotation. the Coriolis effect.