Astro Final

1.

1 point

What causes an aurora?

plates on the surface of Earth that float on denser fluid and move around

the tilt of the magnetic axis of Earth relative to the spin axis

volcanic activity near the poles of Earth

collisions of comet debris with the atmospheric gas of Earth

solar wind particles that hit atmospheric gas

2.

1 point

What fraction of the solar system's mass is in the Sun?

Less than 1%

About 10%

About 75%

About 99%

About 50%

3.

1 point

From Earth, in which type of constellation might you find the planet Saturn?

Only in the same constellation as the Sun

Only in a constellation near the South polar axis of Earth

Only in the same constellation as the Moon.

Only in a Zodiac constellation

Only in a constellation near the North polar axis of Earth

4.

1 point

Planet A has an orbit with a semi-major axis of 3 Astronomical Units.
Planet B has an orbit with a semi-major axis of 12 Astronomical Units.
How does the orbital period compare between the two planets?
Use P2 = a3 to estimate.

Planet B has an orbital period 4 times longer than Planet A.

Planet B has an orbital period 4 times shorter than Planet A.

Planet B has an orbital period 8 times longer than Planet A.

Planet B has an orbital period 64 times shorter than Planet A.

Planet B has an orbital period 64 times longer than Planet A.

5.

1 point

Which statement about the Milky Way Galaxy is TRUE?

there is NO supermassive black hole at the center of the Milky Way

most stars in the Milky Way halo are old and red

the halo of the Milky Way is smaller than the bulge

there is no dust in the disk of the Milky Way

the Milky Way Galaxy is type E0

6.

1 point

What happens when you drop a clock into a black hole?

The clock appears to be advancing rapidly from the point of view of an outside observer, but normally for an observer falling with the clock.

The clock appears to be advancing rapidly both from the point of view of an outside observer and from the point of view of an observer falling with the clock.

The clock appears to be advancing slowly both from the point of view of an outside observer and from the point of view of an observer falling with the clock.

The clock appears to be advancing slowly from the point of view of an outside observer, but normally for an observer falling with the clock.

The clock appears to be advancing at its normal rate both from the point of view of an outside observer and from the point of view of an observer falling with the clock.

7.

1 point

"Terra" and "maria" are terms describing:

icy and warmer regions on the moons of Saturn

regions of high and low sunspot activity

times where many and few aurora occur

the light and dark colored features on the Moon

the spinning regions and calm regions in the disk that forms the solar system

8.

1 point

Which fact about Mars is NOT true?

Mars has a thicker atmosphere than Earth does.

The Viking spacecraft landed on Mars in 1976.

It is always colder than freezing on Mars surface.

There are giant volcanoes on Mars, larger than any on Earth.

There was once water on the surface of Mars.

9.

1 point

In nuclear fusion, energy is produced because:

positrons are produced.

the mass of the reacting chemicals is larger than that of the products.

Hydrogen is not stable.

gravity leads to collapse.

of the energetic impact of collisions.

10.

1 point

Which planet moves fastest in its orbit around the Sun, and when in its orbit is it fastest?

Mercury when it is at the closest point in its orbit to the Sun

Saturn when it is at the farthest point in its orbit from the Sun

Earth when it is at the farthest point in its orbit from the Sun

Mercury when it is at the farthest point in its orbit from the Sun

Earth when it is at the closest point in its orbit to the Sun

11.

1 point

The coolest, least luminous stars are:

in the upper right corner of the Hertzprung-Russell diagram

in the lower right corner of the Hertzprung-Russell diagram

in the upper left corner of the Hertzprung-Russell diagram

very near the center of the Hertzprung-Russell diagram

in the lower left corner of the Hertzprung-Russell diagram

12.

1 point

For every action there is an equal and opposite reaction. This means that

a planet exerts an equal force on the Sun as the Sun does on the planet

outer planets in the Solar System move more rapidly than inner planets

an object at rest will remain in that state unless acted upon by a force

the Earth's orbit around the Sun will decay within 1 billion years

the Sun should move as much around a planet as the planet moves are the Sun

13.

1 point

What fraction of the energy density of the universe consists of dark matter?

99 percent

4 percent

21 percent

75 percent

1 percent

14.

1 point

A lunar eclipse can occur

during a new Moon or a full Moon

only during a full Moon

during a quarter Moon only

during any phase of the Moon

only during a new Moon

15.

1 point

Which is smallest?

Mercury

Saturn's moon Enceladus

Earth

Saturn's moon Titan

Jupiter's moon Ganymede

16.

1 point

Why can nothing (including light) escape a black hole?

Because of the gravitational redshift of light

Because the mass is greater than four solar masses

The required escape velocity exceeds the speed of light

Because of the extreme electromagnetic forces

Because all material is tidally distorted and destroyed

17.

1 point

Which is the greater force due to gravity?

that between the Sun and Pluto

that between Jupiter and the Earth

that between the Earth and the nearest Sun-like star

that between the Sun and the Earth

that between the Sun and Mars

18.

1 point

In your body, which is the most common of the following types of particles?

dark matter

up quarks

photons

strange quarks

iron nuclei

19.

1 point

A planetary nebula:

is what stars and planets are made of

is the ejected envelope of a low to intermediate mass star

lasts very long in the life of every star

is a fuzzy planet

contains a black hole at the center

20.

1 point

Why does Mars have seasons?

Its orbit is circular.

Its axis is tilted relative to its orbital plane.

Mars has a very elliptical orbit that brings it very close to the Sun during summer, and far from the Sun during winter.

It rotates only a few times during each orbit around the Sun.

Mars has an atmosphere which deteriorates and regenerates on a yearly cycle.

21.

1 point

What element is only produced in a supernova explosion?

oxygen

gold

hydrogen

iron

carbon

22.

1 point

What do quasars look like from Earth?

Fuzzy, extended patches of light.

Planetary nebulae

Large concentrations of dark matter.

Glowing gas clouds.

Individual stars in the Milky Way.

23.

1 point

Compared to spiral galaxies, elliptical galaxies have:

less gas, less dust, and more new star formation.

more gas, more dust, and less new star formation.

less gas, more dust, and more new star formation.

less gas, less dust, and less new star formation.

more gas, more dust, and more new star formation.

24.

1 point

One of the lines of Hydrogen has a wavelength of 121.6 nm. If a cloud of Hydrogen gas is moving TOWARDS us at 200 km/s, what will we detect?

An emission line in the cloud's spectrum with a wavelength of exactly 121.6 nm.

An emission line in the cloud's spectrum with a wavelength longer than 121.6 nm.

An emission line in the cloud's spectrum with a wavelength shorter than 121.6 nm.

A continuous spectrum with an absorption line at exactly 121.6 nm.

This cloud will not emit a spectrum at all.

25.

1 point

When is the longest night in the Southern hemisphere?

December 21

August 21

June 21

September 21

March 21

26.

1 point

I detect a star giving off more ultraviolet light than green light. What property of the star can I estimate with this information?

Its age

Its temperature

Its distance from Earth

Its chemical composition

Its density

27.

1 point

We believe most of the Helium in the Universe was made:

in the centers of main sequence stars

in quasars

in supernova explosions

in the Big Bang

in the centers of red giant stars

28.

1 point

Which solar system planet has exactly two moons?

Mars

Earth

Uranus

Neptune

Saturn

29.

1 point

Where was the Sun located on the day you were born?

near the Moon

in the constellation of your Zodiac

it depends on the circumstances, but NOT in a Zodiac constellation

opposite the Earth from the Moon

on the opposite side of the Earth from the constellation of your Zodiac

30.

1 point

The planets of the solar system were formed

by a near collision between the Sun and a nearby star

by the collapse of a single higher mass star into a black hole

as condensations/accretions of hot gases ejected from the Sun

by the accumulation of many comets

as individual condensation/accretion centers in a rotating solar nebula

31.

1 point

What type of boson is responsible for the electromagnetic force?

graviton

photon

gluon

W boson

electron

32.

1 point

Why do the orbits of the planets all lie in nearly the same plane?

This happened purely by chance.

Collisions between planetesimals destroyed all planets that would have been elsewhere.

The early solar nebula flattened into a disk.

The angular momentum of the solar system was kept to a minimum this way.

The Sun's gravity forced them into these orbits.

33.

1 point

A blackbody spectrum of an object with a lower temperature has

a bluer color

a peak at a longer wavelength

absorption lines at many wavelengths

a peak at a shorter wavelength

a peak at the same wavelength as all blackbodies

34.

1 point

Why can't we see back the whole way to the Big Bang?

Our telescopes could never be powerful enough.

Radiation is blueshifted out of the visible range.

It would take too long for light to travel that far.

Not enough photons were produced.

The radiation scatters off matter frequently so the Universe is opaque.

35.

1 point

Say you are in the bottom of Happy Valley. How does the force of gravity compare to what it would be on top of Mount Nittany?

slightly less in Happy Valley than on Mount Nittany

exactly equal in Happy Valley and on Mount Nittany

two times less in Happy Valley than on Mount Nittany

slightly greater in Happy Valley than on Mount Nittany

two times greater in Happy Valley than on Mount Nittany

36.

1 point

When did the first dinosaurs appear on Earth?

10,000 years ago

13.4 billion years ago

2000 years ago

225 million years ago

12.4 billion years ago

37.

1 point

The material in a meteorite is:

mostly gases and vapors from the Sun

unknown since scientists have never been able to collect one

roughly as old as the Solar

about a million years old

a few thousand years old

38.

1 point

Not counting the core, which is the hottest layer of the Sun?

photosphere

chromosphere

radiative zone

convective zone

corona

39.

1 point

How does the apparent brightness of a star change depending on the distance to the star?

it does not depend on the distance

it increases in proportion to the distance

it decreases in proportion to the distance

it increases as the square of the distance

it decreases as the square of the distance

40.

1 point

A lunar eclipse can occur

during any phase of the Moon

during a new Moon or a full Moon

only during a full Moon

only during a new Moon

during a quarter Moon only

41.

1 point

Hubble's Law states that the Hubble constant times the distance to a galaxy is equal to

the rotation velocity of the galaxy

the recessional velocity of the galaxy

the speed of light

the parallax angle

the blueshift of the spectral lines in the galaxy's spectrum

42.

1 point

Which is the longest time?

the time it takes for a photon to pass through the radiative zone of the Sun

the time it takes a photon to pass through the corona of the Sun

the time it take light to traverse the convective zone of the Sun

the time it takes a photon to pass from the photosphere of the Sun to the Earth

one hour

43.

1 point

What is the reason for the seasons on Earth?

Earth is closest to the Sun in July, farthest from the Sun in January.

Earth is tilted with respect to the Sun by about 23.5 degrees.

Earth rotates more slowly in winter, faster in summer.

Earth orbits the Sun more slowly in winter, faster in summer.

Earth's Moon blocks more sunlight from reaching Earth in winter than in summer.

44.

1 point

Telescopes above Earth's atmosphere are better because

they allow us to see stars twinkle more

they can see radio waves much better than telescopes on the ground

they give clearer images without atmospheric blurring

they can more easily be designed as refracting telescopes

they generally have a much larger collecting area than telescopes on the ground

45.

1 point

Most of the planets discovered outside our Solar System were discovered because they:

transit their host stars once every day

make their host stars wobble around such that the velocity could be detected by the Doppler Effect

are brighter background stars via microlensing

make their host stars wobble around so that their change in position in the sky is detected.

are in orbit around a millisecond pulsar, not a normal star

46.

1 point

What is the main constituent of the atmosphere of Venus?

nitrogen

helium

oxygen

hydrogen

carbon dioxide

47.

1 point

Which star is the closest if all have the same apparent brightness?

a red giant

a temperature 10000 K main sequence star

a main sequence star with a luminosity 100 times that of the Sun

a temperature 6000 K main sequence star

white dwarf

48.

1 point

Say that our Moon was Full on May 1, 2007. When was the next First Quarter phase after that Full Moon?

May 22

May 8

May 4

May 15

June 1

49.

1 point

How do astronomers measure the mass of a supermassive black hole?

by measuring the speed at which stars move in its vicinity

by comparing its X-ray luminosity to its radio luminosity

using the formula E = mc2

by comparing its apparent magnitude to its absolute brightness

by measuring its parallax