Astro 1 Unit 4
What produces the afterglow of a gamma-ray burst? A: Collision of expanding stellar material with gas and dust in the interstellar medium. B: Collisions between planets and stars. C: Repeated explosions of the central star. D: Gradual escape of particles from a central black hole. E: X-rays travel more slowly through space than other types of radiation so they produce an afterglow.
A: Collision of expanding stellar material with gas and dust in the interstellar medium.
Compared to spiral galaxies, elliptical galaxies have... A: ...less gas, less dust, and less new star formation. B: ...more gas, more dust, and more new star formation.
A: ...less gas, less dust, and less new star formation.
Earlier than a certain time, the laws of modern physics cannot describe the universe adequately. Roughly when is that time? A: 10^-43seconds B: 10^-33seconds C: 1 minute D: 3 minutes E: 1 million years
A: 10^-43seconds
How fast is a galaxy at a distance of 3000 Mpc receding from us? A: 216,000 km/s B: 3000 km/s C: 2400 km/s D: 24 km/s E: 24,000 km/s
A: 216,000 km/s
What kind of galaxy will be the final result from the collision of the Milky Way and Andromeda galaxies? A: A large elliptical. B: A large spiral. C: An irregular galaxy. D: A string of little elliptical galaxies. E: Nothing - the collision will tear them both apart and send their remains flying outward in every direction.
A: A large elliptical.
How many types of fundamental particles are there in the Universe and how many dominate on Earth? A: About 30 with 3 dominant B: About 30 with 15 dominant C: About 300 with 3 dominant D: About 300 with 30 dominant E: More than a million with 3 dominant
A: About 30 with 3 dominant
How far away is most distant galaxy seen in the Hubble Deep Field? A: About twelve billion (1.2x1010) light years. B: About eighteen thousand Hubble Distance Units. C: About forty megaparsecs. D: About sixty million (6x107) astronomical units. E: About two hundred billion (2x1011) light years.
A: About twelve billion (1.2x1010) light years.
What are the 3 parts of this type of galaxy, and which 2 might you see through a telescope? A: Disk, bulge, and halo; would see bulge and disk, and wouldn't see halo. B: Disk, bulge, and halo; would see bulge and halo, and wouldn't see disk. C: Stars, Gas, and dust; would see gas and dust, and wouldn't see stars. D: Spirals, ellipticals, and irregulars; would see ellipticals and spirals, but wouldn't see irregulars. E: Spirals, ellipticals, and irregulars; would see irregulars and spirals, but wouldn't see ellipticals.
A: Disk, bulge, and halo; would see bulge and disk, and wouldn't see halo.
Which are NOT fundamental particles? A: Protons. B: Quarks. C: Leptons. D: Bosons. E: Electrons.
A: Protons.
What kind of galaxy is the 'Milky Way?' A: Spiral. B: Elliptical. C: Compound. D: Dwarf. E: Irregular.
A: Spiral.
What is the difference between an E0 and an E7 galaxy? A: The E7 has an oval shape and the E0 is circular. B: The E7 has a larger disk than the E0. C: The E7 has a smaller disk than the E0. D: The E7 has a circular shape and E0 is oval. E: There is no such thing as an E0 galaxy.
A: The E7 has an oval shape and the E0 is circular.
Which mysterious phenomena do scientists attribute to dark energy? A: The increasing rate of expansion of the universe. B: Mysterious bonding that holds atoms together. C: The creation of the cosmic microwave background. D: The formation of Helium through nucleosynthesis. E: Dark energy causes ALL of the above.
A: The increasing rate of expansion of the universe.
What do you notice about the relationship between the angular size of the galaxy and its redshift (how far the wavelength is shifted)? A: The redshift tends to be larger if the angular size is smaller. B: The redshift tends to be smaller if the angular size is smaller. C: There seems to be no relationship between redshift and angular size.
A: The redshift tends to be larger if the angular size is smaller.
Why is our galaxy called the 'Milky Way?' A: The term 'Milky Way Galaxy' is derived from the Greek word for milk, and there appeared to be a stream of milk running across the sky. B: A certain candy company paid an insane amount of money to have the entire galaxy named after one of its products. C: The name was chosen during a 1980 International Astronomical Union conference. D: "Milky Way" is a mis-translation of the original Sumerian name which meant "river of tears." E: The name "Milky Way" refers to a mystical treatise written by a stargazing Italian monk during the Renaissance period.
A: The term 'Milky Way Galaxy' is derived from the Greek word for milk, and there appeared to be a stream of milk running across the sky.
Can we see the "intruder galaxy" in the image? A: Yes. B: No.
A: Yes.
Does the universe look the same in the directions of the HDFN and HDFS (fractions of galaxy types statistically similar)? A: Yes. B: No.
A: Yes.
What is the temperature of the universe at present? A: about 2.7 degrees Kelvin B: about 10,000 degrees Kelvin C: exactly 0 degrees Kelvin - absolute zero D: about 1 million degrees Kelvin E: about 300 degrees Kelvin
A: about 2.7 degrees Kelvin
What types of fundamental particles are in an atom? A: just up quarks, down quarks, and electrons B: just electons and positrons C: just up quarks and top quarks D: just down quarks, electrons, and positrons E: just neutrons and electrons
A: just up quarks, down quarks, and electrons
Why don't we notice dark energy if it is everywhere? A: there is only a small amount per unit volume, but a large amount in total. B: it has no effect on the expansion of space. C: it is only a short-range force. D: it has a negative charge so it only interacts with positive charge. E: none of the above
A: there is only a small amount per unit volume, but a large amount in total.
Among spiral galaxies, an "SBa" has... A: ...no bar, tight smooth spiral arms, and a small bulge. B: ...a bar, tight smooth spiral arms, and a large bulge. C: ...a bar, very loose smooth spiral arms, and a moderate-sized bulge. D: ...no bar, loose spiral arms, and almost no bulge. E: ...a bar, jagged spiral arms, and a small bulge.
B: ...a bar, tight smooth spiral arms, and a large bulge.
There was a very rapid expansion period called inflation early in the history of the universe. When was this? A: 10^-43to 10^-42seconds B: 10^-35to 10^-33seconds C: 10^-12to 10^-11seconds D: 1-3 seconds E: 100-200 seconds
B: 10^-35to 10^-33seconds
How many galaxies are needed to get a fair sample to determine what fraction are ellipticals? A: 5-10. B: 35-45. C: 75-100. D: About 500. E: Over 1000.
B: 35-45.
How many types of leptons are there? A: 3 B: 6 C: 24 D: 16 E: 2
B: 6
How many types of quarks are there? A: 3 B: 6 C: 24 D: 16 E: 2
B: 6
How many powers of ten separate the diameter of the Solar System and the diameter of the Milky Way Galaxy? A: 10. B: 8. C: 6. D: 4. E: 12.
B: 8.
Name the rapidly rotating disk at the center of the galaxy spinning around the black hole. A: Convection cell. B: Accretion disk. C: Compaction zone. D: Acceleration disk. E: Galactic circular storm.
B: Accretion disk.
Which are more massive, the black holes in X-ray binaries or those at the centers of galaxies? A: Black holes in X-ray binaries are more massive. B: Black holes in the centers of galaxies are more massive.
B: Black holes in the centers of galaxies are more massive.
Why are the star clusters in the tidal tail blue? A: They are sad at being left behind. B: Blue stars in these newly active star-forming regions far outshine the less massive red stars. C: Blue stars are more massive and therefore have greater inertia, so they stay in place while the rest of the galaxy keeps moving. D: Blue stars are less massive and are therefore pulled away by tidal forces more easily. E: The individual stars were red before the interaction, and an injection of new matter onto them turned them blue.
B: Blue stars in these newly active star-forming regions far outshine the less massive red stars.
Which have more massive supermassive black holes, spiral galaxies like Andromeda or elliptical galaxies like Cygnus A? A: Spirals. B: Ellipticals. C: Both are the same. D: Neither type of galaxies has supermassive black holes.
B: Ellipticals.
How might light be captured? A: Fish net. B: Hubble Space Telescope. C: Hobby-Eberly Microscope. D: Hester gyroscope. E: Nuclear magnetic resonance spectrograph.
B: Hubble Space Telescope.
In what part of spiral galaxies do new stars form? A: In the halo. B: In the spiral arms. C: In the bulge. D: He's wrong. No new stars form inside spirals. They form outside the galaxy and are pulled in. E: He's wrong. No new stars are forming anywhere.
B: In the spiral arms.
Which galaxy do you come from? A: The Andromeda Galaxy. B: The Milky Way Galaxy. C: The Virgo Galaxy. D: The Antenna Galaxy. E: The Whirlpool Galaxy.
B: The Milky Way Galaxy.
What is the result when gas clouds from both of the colliding galaxies meet? A: The clouds, being very diffuse, pass through each other just like stars pass by each other without interacting. B: The clouds crushing down on each other starts a burst of new star formation. C: They smash each other into bits and end up spread out in many directions. D: Huge, galaxy-spanning lightning bolts strike out from their collision, destroying many nearby stars. E: They collect into one big cloud but nothing else happens.
B: The clouds crushing down on each other starts a burst of new star formation.
Why was it important to have a "boring" patch of sky for the Hubble Deep Field? A: To avoid catching a comet or asteroid that could end up a blur streak across the entire image. B: To minimize the number of objects in the view that were local to our own galaxy. C: To prevent the Hubble Space Telescope overheating from bright light sources. D: Honoring the memory of Edwin Hubble, who first searched this same part of space. E: To first take a "flat field" for use in comparison to a more interesting part of the sky.
B: To minimize the number of objects in the view that were local to our own galaxy.
Which of the following are flavors of quarks? A: Blue and green. B: Up and top. C: Baryons and antibaryons. D: Leptons and antileptons. E: Charge and mass.
B: Up and top.
How do we determine the velocities of far away galaxies, in order to use Hubble's law? A: We measure how fast they are rotating. B: We measure the redshifts in their spectra. C: We determine their distances and divide by the time it takes their light to reach us. D: We look at how flattened they are, since moving at higher velocity tends to spread a galaxy out thinner. E: We can tell by how big they look in the sky.
B: We measure the redshifts in their spectra.
What other information do we combine with the luminosity of a Type Ia supernova to measure its distance? A: energy. B: apparent brightness. C: temperature. D: size. E: redshift.
B: apparent brightness.
What do we mean when we say the universe becomes transparent at 300,000 years after the Big Bang? A: we can only see from one end of the universe to another if we existed before that time B: electromagnetic radiation (light) can travel freely through the universe so we can see to large distances C: Helium nuclei formed then and since they are transparent it was possible to see to larger distances D: protons and neutrons formed then and since they are transparent it was possible to see to larger distances E: the universe ends at that time
B: electromagnetic radiation (light) can travel freely through the universe so we can see to large distances
An object that appears to be smaller on the sky will tend to be A: closer than one that appears larger. B: farther away than one that appears larger. C: there will be no trend.
B: farther away than one that appears larger.
In general, the further away a galaxy is from the Milky Way A: the brighter it will appear. B: the greater its redshift. C: the older it must be because its light takes so long to reach us. D: the shorter the wavelength of the light we receive from it. E: the less rapidly it will be rotating.
B: the greater its redshift.
Which of the sounds matches the real universe? A: the one with 2% of the density in atoms B: the one with 4% of the density in atoms C: the one with 8% of the density in atoms
B: the one with 4% of the density in atoms
Which 3 quarks and/or antiquarks combine to make a neutron? A: uud B: udd C: ucd D: usd E: ssc
B: udd
How far does light travel in 100 years? A: 100 miles. B: 100 wavelengths. C: 100 light years. D: 100 astronomical units. E: 100 parsecs.
C: 100 light years.
When did there first start to be four separate forces? A: 10^-43seconds B: 10^-34seconds C: 10^-12seconds D: 1 second E: 100 seconds
C: 10^-12seconds
The universe formed Helium nuclei in a process called nucleosynthesis. At that time, what fraction of the mass was converted to Helium nuclei (2 protons and 2 neutrons)? A: 1 percent B: 2 percent C: 25 percent D: 50 percent E: 99 percent
C: 25 percent
What is the mass of the supermassive black hole in the center of the Andromeda galaxy? A: 10 times the mass of our Sun. B: 20 thousand times the mass of our Sun. C: 30 million times the mass of our Sun D: 4 billion times the mass of our Sun E: 500 billion times the mass of our Sun
C: 30 million times the mass of our Sun
How many galaxies are there in the part of the universe we can observe? A: About 10,000. B: 50-100 million. C: 50-100 billion. D: 20,000-50,000. E: 100,000-300,000.
C: 50-100 billion.
How many powers of ten separate the approximate diameter of Earth (North and Central America) from the diameter of our Solar System (the orbits of Neptune and Pluto)? A: 4. B: 2. C: 6. D: 16. E: 9.
C: 6.
Which source generates the most energy over its lifetime? A: The Sun. B: A camp fire. C: A quasar. D: A supernova. E: A gamma-ray burst.
C: A quasar.
What color of stars are found in the young star clusters in the disk of the Whirlpool galaxy? A: Ultraviolet. B: White. C: Blue. D: Red. E: Infrared.
C: Blue.
How many stars are in each galaxy in the Hubble Deep Field? A: Anywhere from about one thousand in the ellipticals to ten thousand in the spiral galaxies. B: From one million (106) to a hundred million (108). C: From one billion (109) to a hundred billion (1011). D: Over a trillion (1012) in any given galaxy, even the smallest. E: From one hundred to one thousand.
C: From one billion (109) to a hundred billion (1011).
What does Einstein's cosmological constant have to do with dark energy? A: It is the cause of gravity. B: It may ultimately stop the expansion of the universe. C: It is a measure of the dark energy density that fills empty space. D: It causes the expansion of the universe which dark energy opposes. E: It has nothing to do with dark energy.
C: It is a measure of the dark energy density that fills empty space.
Why won't an object be seen as it is today, if you could go to its location instantly? A: Astronomical objects change very rapidly so even though only a short time has passed as its light travels through space, it will be in a completely different state now. B: Light has been traveling a large distance through space since it left the object; we see the object as it will be in the future. C: Light has been traveling a large distance through space since it left the object; we see the object as it was in the past. D: Photons decay as they pass through space so information is lost about what they looked like when the light was emitted. E: All the objects will have exploded by now.
C: Light has been traveling a large distance through space since it left the object; we see the object as it was in the past.
What are the "friends" (i.e., other types of galaxies) referred to in the Riddle? A: Many giant elliptical galaxies that are always found nearby a spiral. B: Black hole galaxies clustered around the spiral galaxy. C: Nearby dwarf galaxies clustered around the spiral galaxy. D: Nebulae that look like other galaxies and change the gravity around the spiral. E: Many large spiral galaxies that are always found nearby a spiral.
C: Nearby dwarf galaxies clustered around the spiral galaxy.
The redshift of galaxies in the Universe is correctly interpreted as: A: A Doppler shift due to the motions of galaxies through space. B: An "aging" of the light. C: Space itself expanding with time; the photon wavelengths are stretched as they they travel through space. D: The difference in temperature of distant and nearby galaxies. E: Extinction due to the effects of dust in galaxies.
C: Space itself expanding with time; the photon wavelengths are stretched as they they travel through space.
What is the universe expanding into? A: The universe is not expanding. It just appears to be so. B: It is expanding into empty space. C: The universe is not expanding into space, space itself is expanding. D: It is expanding away from the center into regions that have been unexplored by our telescopes.
C: The universe is not expanding into space, space itself is expanding.
Why didn't they see flickering brightness that would show black holes were eating gas from mergers? A: The earliest light went away from the galaxy in a different direction. B: Because black holes themselves didn't exist until much later. C: There's a delay between the merger and time gas and stars flow into black hole. D: Black holes need billions of years to grow large enough to swallow whole stars. E: Because mergers do not produce new stars and tend to disperse all gas in the region.
C: There's a delay between the merger and time gas and stars flow into black hole.
Why are there dark lines in the spiral arms of the Whirlpool Galaxy? A: They are regions where no stars formed because of an absence of matter. B: There are imperfections on the mirror of the telescope that took the image. C: They are regions of dust that block the light of the stars behind them. D: Black holes in those regions are prohibiting passage of light through. E: Supernova explosions blew away the material in those regions.
C: They are regions of dust that block the light of the stars behind them.
Why did these astronomers take so many different pictures of the same patch of sky? A: To "top" a previous study by rival astronomers, who took slightly fewer images. B: Galaxies have brightnesses that vary over hours or days, and they needed to be sure to get roughly equal light from all of them. C: To average over many images and keep only the consistent object details, filtering out random single-exposure events like charged particles from the solar wind. D: Needed a separate image for every nanometer-increment wavelength from 350nm to 800nm, to compile the final full-color image. E: It's not NASA's fault that pulsar in the foreground kept blinking!
C: To average over many images and keep only the consistent object details, filtering out random single-exposure events like charged particles from the solar wind.
What are the standard candles used to determine that the universe is accelerating? A: spiral galaxies B: elliptical galaxies C: Type Ia supernovae D: light bulbs E: Type II supernovae formed from the death of massive stars
C: Type Ia supernovae
The gravitational force acts on particles with mass. What does the electromagnetic force act on? A: color B: mass C: charge D: photons E: Z bosons
C: charge
Now that we know there is dark energy in the universe, what will be the fate of the universe? A: the universe will definitely contract again eventually, because we know dark energy will decay away over time. B: the universe will continue to expand forever because we know dark energy will last forever. C: we don't know yet the fate of the universe; it may continue to expand forever or it may contract again. D: it will continue to expand at exactly the same rate as it is now. E: it will suddenly disappear
C: we don't know yet the fate of the universe; it may continue to expand forever or it may contract again.
How fast is a galaxy at a distance of 300 Mpc receding from us? A: 300 km/s B: 300,000 km/s C: 240 km/s D: 21,600 km/s E: 7,200 km/s
D: 21,600 km/s
About how many dots are seen in the Hubble Deep Field image, just within that image? What are the dots seen in the Hubble Deep Field? A: 3000 stars. B: 3 million stars. C: 100 galaxies. D: 3000 galaxies. E: 3 million galaxies.
D: 3000 galaxies.
How many different kinds of mesons can you make using only up, antiup, down, and antidown quarks? A: 32 B: 16 C: 8 D: 4 E: 2
D: 4
About what percentage of Hubble Deep Field (HDF) galaxies do astronomers find are irregular? A: 5%. B: 25%. C: 50%. D: 70%. E: 90%.
D: 70%.
Why does the riddle say that Earth is not in a special spot? A: The Sun is at the center of the universe, but the Earth is not. B: The Big Bang explosion sent all material blasting away from the Earth. C: Hubble's law applies to some galaxies but not to others, so many planets besides Earth have their own Hubble's law. D: All space is expanding so Hubble's law would apply around all galaxies. E: Hubble measured the expansion law from the Moon, not from the Earth.
D: All space is expanding so Hubble's law would apply around all galaxies.
How many galaxies are there in the observable universe? A: Fifty to a hundred billion (5x1010 - 1011). B: Ten million (107). C: One to two hundred thousand. D: At least 1 trillion (1012). E: Fewer than one million.
D: At least 1 trillion (1012).
Why can't Thomasin find any constellations she recognizes? A: Dusty regions like those in the Whirlpool Galaxy are preventing the starlight escaping the Milky Way. B: Black holes in the spaces between galaxies trap enough light to render most stars invisible from long distances. C: Warping of space-time by galaxy masses bends the starlights' paths and distorts the constellations' shapes. D: From any position far outside the Solar System, the stars are seen at different angles and fall out of the constellations' traditional shapes. E: Not enough time has passed for the Milky Way stars' light to reach the Kiranye's galaxy.
D: From any position far outside the Solar System, the stars are seen at different angles and fall out of the constellations' traditional shapes.
What category do astronomers use if a galaxy does not fit into the spiral or elliptical category? A: Giant. B: Funny. C: Dwarf. D: Irregular. E: Primordial.
D: Irregular.
Why does the image show very few stars? A: It is hard to find stars in the Milky Way Galaxy, so it would have been too difficult to select a region that had many. B: Stars are only visible in radio waves, and the Hubble Deep Field image was taken in the optical region of the spectrum. C: Stars are only visible in the optical region of the spectrum, and the Hubble Deep Field image was taken with a radio telescope. D: It was chosen so that bright stars in the Milky Way Galaxy do not interfere with our picture of the distant universe. E: The scientists were interested seeing the light of galaxies through a region of space filled with black holes.
D: It was chosen so that bright stars in the Milky Way Galaxy do not interfere with our picture of the distant universe.
What happens to the planets in a galaxy when that galaxy collides with another galaxy? A: Smaller stars collide with each other, forming more massive stars which swallow the planets. B: They are pulled out of their orbits by the tidal forces of the intruding galaxy. C: They accrete a whole lot of new matter and become stars themselves. D: Nothing, because the spaces between stellar systems in a galaxy is much larger than their size.
D: Nothing, because the spaces between stellar systems in a galaxy is much larger than their size.
Why isn't Andromeda a strong source of energy? A: It really is; dark matter in the space between the Andromeda Galaxy and the Milky Way is blocking our measurement of the total energy. B: It is a very old black hole that has already converted most of its internal mass to energy. C: It only appears not to be because most of the energy is released towards a direction away from our Milky Way. D: Only a relative trickle of gas falls into the black hole. E: Andromeda is a small elliptical galaxy that supplies very little free gas to the zone near the black hole.
D: Only a relative trickle of gas falls into the black hole.
What is this galaxy doing that keeps it from being idle? A: The black hole at the center of the disk is sucking in the stars in the disk, which is gradually disappearing. B: It is fragmenting into different irregular parts as the universe evolves. C: It is oscillating between compressed and rarefied states, changing by a factor of two in size every million years. D: Stars are forming in the spiral arms and the disk is rotating. E: The galaxy evaporates quickly so that it will only be around for another million years.
D: Stars are forming in the spiral arms and the disk is rotating.
Which force holds the quarks together within a proton? A: The 'weak' force, through nuclear decay. B: Gravity, through exchange of gravitons. C: Electromagnetic, through exchange of photons. D: The 'strong' force, through exchange of gluons. E: Proton/neutron mutual attraction forces.
D: The 'strong' force, through exchange of gluons.
What is the name of the nearest large spiral galaxy to our own Milky Way, in the Local Group? A: The Large Magellanic Cloud. B: The Small Magellanic Cloud. C: The Sagittarius Dwarf. D: The Andromeda Galaxy. E: The Virgo Cluster.
D: The Andromeda Galaxy.
How might a nearby neighbor change the shape of this galaxy? A: It might obliterate all life in that galaxy because of collisions between different planetary systems in the merger of the two galaxies. B: A merger with the neighbor might tighten the spiral arms and lead to a shrinking of the bulge component. C: It might make the disk of the galaxy thinner and the halo rounder. D: The merger of two spiral galaxies may give rise to an elliptical galaxy. E: Small whirlpools might form in the disk of the spiral and the gas and stars would fall into them, leading to the disappearance of the disk.
D: The merger of two spiral galaxies may give rise to an elliptical galaxy.
In the riddle, what is meant by light leaving its trap? A: Light travelled much slower than the speed of light after the time of nucleosynthesis. B: Light was stuck to the matter concentrations by the force of gluons. C: Black holes prevented light from escaping in the early universe until after recombination. D: The universe was opaque until atoms formed and radiation could travel freely through space. E: The electromagnetic force held light in its place since light has an opposite charge to matter.
D: The universe was opaque until atoms formed and radiation could travel freely through space.
What would describe the earliest galaxies? A: They were mostly spiral galaxies. B: They were free of dark matter. C: They were fully-formed,no longer evolving. D: They were undergoing rapid changes. E: They were mostly elliptical galaxies.
D: They were undergoing rapid changes.
What causes the long tail to protrude from this galaxy? A: A supernova explosion blew material out in that direction. B: The galaxy is moving so fast through space that it's leaving a trail of heavier matter behind. C: A unique and yet unexplained phenomenon creates an anti-gravity effect that's pushing stars out of the galaxy. D: Tidal forces caused by interaction with another galaxy are drawing the material off. E: An incredibly powerful extraterrestrial civilization is reshaping the galaxy to suit its tastes.
D: Tidal forces caused by interaction with another galaxy are drawing the material off.
What happened at 10^-33seconds when quarks could bind together for the first time? A: the universe became transparent B: the expansion of the universe began C: helium formed D: protons and neutrons formed E: atoms formed
D: protons and neutrons formed
Among these choices, which is the last thing that happens in the history of the universe? A: first atoms form B: nucleosynthesis C: the four forces separate and become independent D: stars form E: rapid expansion called inflation
D: stars form
Which of the following is NOT a possible explanation for dark energy? A: quintessence, a fifth substance to the universe that varies in time. B: cosmological constant. C: gravity leaking out to dimensions besides the three spatial dimensions. D: the speed of light changing dramatically with time. E: all of the above.
D: the speed of light changing dramatically with time.
What is so special about Type Ia supernova that make them good distance indicators? A: they are formed from the death of the most massive stars. B: they are only seen in the distant universe and not nearby. C: their low temperatures prevent the Hubble Space Telescope overheating from bright light sources. D: their luminosities are known. E: they give rise to very large debris that can be seen at large distances.
D: their luminosities are known.
What is a proton composed of? A: two down quarks and one up quark B: six up quarks and six down quarks C: two electons D: two up quarks and a down quark E: a proton is a fundamental particle
D: two up quarks and a down quark
How much bigger is the Earth than quarks (tiny sub-atomic particles)? A: 1000 times. B: 10^40times. C: 10^8times. D: 10^15times. E: 10^23times.
E: 10^23times.
How old was the universe when light from the most distant galaxies in the Hubble Ultra Deep Field was emitted? A: 100,000 years. B: 5 million years. C: 10 billion years. D: 400 million years. E: 800 million years.
E: 800 million years.
Which source is the most luminous (or would be, if all its energy were output in visible light)? A: The Sun. B: A nuclear power plant. C: A quasar. D: A supernova. E: A gamma-ray burst.
E: A gamma-ray burst.
Where do we observe black holes? A: In orbit around stars in binary systems. B: In the center of the Milky Way Galaxy. C: In the centers of elliptical galaxies. D: In quasars. E: All of the above.
E: All of the above.
Why do hydrogen gas clouds glow red? A: Remnants of ancient supernova explosions, they've cooled from white hot to reddish over the course of millions of years. B: Their light is highly red-shifted because of the high speeds with which the gas clouds are moving. C: They're members of the Cool Cosmic Clouds Party (CCCP). D: Decay of trace radioactive elements within them heats the clouds until they glow red. E: Electromagnetic radiation from nearby stars heats the clouds until they glow red.
E: Electromagnetic radiation from nearby stars heats the clouds until they glow red.
When supermassive black holes have access to "fuel" what are they? A: Gamma-ray bursts (GRBs). B: Type III Supernovae. C: Planetary nebulae. D: They get pulled apart by tidal forces. E: Quasars and active galactic nuclei (AGNs).
E: Quasars and active galactic nuclei (AGNs).
What is nature's speed limit? A: Refractive index. B: Planck's constant. C: Frequency of light. D: Wavelength of light. E: Speed of light.
E: Speed of light.
If the objects seen in the past are galaxies, how might they have changed? A: There were more ellipticals in the past and would be spirals at present. B: Things would have had a larger mass in the past than at present. C: Galaxies would have had less star formation in the past than at present. D: They would have been destroyed by supernovae explosions by the present time. E: The galaxies were more irregular and patchy in the past than they are at present.
E: The galaxies were more irregular and patchy in the past than they are at present.
Why don't the nuclei of atoms contain any types of quarks but ups and downs? A: Those are the only kind of quarks that exist. B: Only those types of quarks have positive charges. C: Only those types of quarks have negative charges. D: The other flavors are not massive enough. E: The other flavors do not live for very long.
E: The other flavors do not live for very long.
How tiny a spot is the Hubble Deep Field? A: About 1/2 of the entire sky. B: About 1/5 of the entire sky. C: About 1/10 of the entire sky. D: About 1/50 of the entire sky. E: The size of President Roosevelt's eye on a dime held at arm's length.
E: The size of President Roosevelt's eye on a dime held at arm's length.
How do Tadpole galaxies get their shapes? A: They form in a region of chaotic spacetime expansion. B: They're spreading out on their own due to internal pressures. C: They are the results of ellipticals with powerful x-ray jets coming from their cores. D: They were fully-formed spiral galaxies before, and lost some arms to black holes. E: They represent merging galaxies.
E: They represent merging galaxies.
Which of the following statements is FALSE? A: For an observer located in a galaxy all other distant galaxies would appear to move away from his. B: The universe looks the same in all directions; i.e., it is homogeneous and isotropic. C: The universe is expanding. D: In our universe, at earlier times, everything was closer together. E: We are at the center of the universe.
E: We are at the center of the universe.
What word or phrase would be a reasonable description of dark energy? A: strong force binding. B: electromagnetic repulsion. C: weak force binding. D: attractive force. E: negative gravity
E: negative gravity
What type of boson is responsible for the electromagnetic force? A: graviton B: electron C: gluon D: W boson E: photon
E: photon
Why couldn't electrons bind to nuclei when the nuclei first formed? A: universe was much too cold B: electrons have negative charge and repel the nuclei C: electrons exert the strong force on the nuclei and repel it D: electrons exert the weak force on the nuclei and repel it E: universe was much too hot
E: universe was much too hot
