ASTR 1000 Quiz 1, 2, 3

When we see Saturn going through a period of apparent retrograde motion, it means:

Earth is passing Saturn in its orbit, with both planets on the same side of the Sun

Earth is closer to the Sun in January than in July. Therefore:

Earth travels faster in its orbit around the Sun in January than in July.

Which of the following correctly lists our "cosmic address" from small to large?

Earth, solar system, Milky Way Galaxy, Local Group, Local Supercluster, universe

Which of the following was not a major advantage of Copernicus's Sun-centered model over the Ptolemaic model?

It made significantly better predictions of planetary positions in our sky.

If the Sun rises precisely due east,

It must be the day of either the spring or fall equinox.

According to Kepler's third law:

Jupiter orbits the Sun at a faster speed than Saturn.

The fact that we always see the same face of the Moon tells us that

The Moon's rotation period is the same as its orbital period.

The fact that nearly all galaxies are moving away from us, with more distant ones moving faster, helped us to conclude that:

The universe is expanding

If stars existed but galaxies did not:

We would not exist because we are made of material that required recycling in galaxies

Beijing and Philadelphia have about the same latitudes but very different longitudes. Therefore, tonight's night sky in these two places

Will look about the same

When it is summer in Australia, it is

Winter in the United States

Total solar eclipses and total lunar eclipses often happen two weeks apart. Which kind of eclipse can more people witness with their own eyes?

far more people could see the total lunar eclipse

When we say that a planet has a highly eccentric orbit, we mean that:

in some parts of its orbit it is much closer to the Sun than in other parts.

Galileo's contribution to astronomy included:

making observations and conducting experiments that dispelled scientific objections to the Sun-centered model.

Two stars that are in the same constellation

may actually be very far away from each other

The age of our solar system is about:

one-third of the age of the universe.

If there is going to be a total lunar eclipse tonight, then you know that:

the Moon's phase is full.

In winter, Earth's axis points toward the star Polaris. In spring:

the axis also points toward Polaris

If we represent the solar system on a scale that allows us to walk from the Sun to Pluto in a few minutes, then:

the planets would all be marble size or smaller and the nearest stars would be thousands of miles away.

A week after full moon, the Moon's phase is:

third quarter