WQ #2

Which ancient Greek thinker suggested (long before Copernicus) that the Earth is moving around the Sun? a. Aristotle b. Aristarchus c. Eratosthenes d. Hipparchus e. Zorba

b. Aristarchus

From horizon to opposite horizon, the sky takes up how much angular distance? a. 90 degrees b. 180 degrees c. 360 degrees d. 100 degrees e. you can't fool me, this number varies with latitude

b. 180 degrees

Where on Earth do stars always circle the zenith (and never rise and set)? a. at the equator b. at the north pole c. at the latitude of Washington D.C. d. everywhere e. nowhere

b. at the north pole

The 88 sectors into which astronomers today divide the celestial sphere (the whole sky) are called: a. zodiacs b. constellations c. asterisms d. epicycles e. celestial states

b. constellations

The star that is currently closest to the North Celestial Pole is: a. Arcturus b. Betelgeuse c. Polaris d. Rigel e. Nicole Kidman

c. Polaris

The great astronomer of ancient times who summarized and improved a system of circles upon circles to explain the complicated motions of the planets (and published the system in a book now called The Almagest) is: a. Hipparchus b. Copernicus c. Ptolemy d. Pythagoras

c. Ptolemy

In Copernicus' day, people were worried about the idea that the celestial sphere seemed to turn around us once a day because the Earth rotates. They argued that if the Earth were to rotate so fast, it should fly apart. According to our textbook, what was one response Copernicus had to this worry? a. Copernicus said that the presence of a large Moon kept the Earth from flying apart. b. Copernicus argued that God would never allow a planet with people to be exposed to that kind of danger c. Copernicus said that the Earth also orbits the Sun, and the motion around the Sun keeps the many parts of the Earth together d. Copernicus argued that the idea that the much larger celestial sphere is turning once a day (and the Earth is not) meant that the celestial sphere would be torn apart even more e. You can't fool me, Copernicus never thought that the Earth was rotating

d. Copernicus argued that the idea that the much larger celestial sphere is turning once a day (and the Earth is not) meant that the celestial sphere would be torn apart even more

In Ptolemy's system the planets orbit the Earth and not the Sun. How did the system explain the retrograde motion of planets like Jupiter? a. the planets were not moving along the ecliptic but all over the celestial sphere b. the planets moved in very elongated ellipses, and their speed in orbit changed radically over the course of a year c. the Sun moved among the planets, and pulled them out of their circular orbits d. the planets moved on a small circle whose center, in turn, circled a point near the Earth e. you can't fool me, Ptolemy's system did not include ANY explanation of retrograde motion

d. the planets moved on a small circle whose center, in turn, circled a point near the Earth

Some Canadian troops are sent (as part of a U.N. peacekeeping force) to a country located on the Earth's equator. At night, when homesickness makes them gaze sleeplessly at the stars, which of the following will be familiar to them (the same at the equator as in Canada): a. the celestial poles are on the north and south points of the horizon b. the celestial equator is overhead and passes through the zenith c. all stars rise and set (no star remains in the sky all night long) d. all stars are above the horizon exactly half a day e. none of the above are the same on the equator as in Canada

e. none of the above are the same on the equator as in Canada

The Sun's apparent path around the celestial sphere is called a. the horizon b. the circumpolar zone c. the celestial equator d. the celestial hot-zone e. the ecliptic

e. the ecliptic

When it comes to our place in the solar system today, which model do we accept? a. geocentric b. heliocentric c. Ptolemaic d. Aristotelean e. self-centered (Trumpian)

b. heliocentric

In the Northern Hemisphere, the altitude (height in degrees above the horizon) of the North Star is always roughly equal to the a. longitude of the observer b. latitude of the observer c. altitude of the Sun d. the temperature at midnight e. the tilt of the Earth's axis

b. latitude of the observer

If the Earth goes around the Sun, why is the ecliptic not lined up with the celestial equator? a. the ecliptic is a circle fixed in the sky, but the celestial equator is different for observers at different latitudes b. the Earth's axis is tilted by about 23 degrees from the vertical c. the pull of the other planets makes the Earth wobble significantly in the course of a year d. the land mass of the Earth is more concentrated in the Northern Hemisphere e. the Earth's orbit is not a circle but an ellipse

b. the Earth's axis is tilted by about 23 degrees from the vertical

Let's say we find a star that is located on the points or circles in the sky listed in the answer choices below. Then, on the same night, we move to a location on Earth that is some significant distance from our first location. There will now be a different star at or on: a. the celestial north pole b. the zenith c. the celestial equator d. the celestial south pole e. all of the above

b. the zenith

Within a constellation, a smaller, recognizable pattern of stars is often called: a. a Dipper b. a zodiac c. an asterism d. an ecliptic e. a cameo

c. an asterism

The south celestial pole and the north celestial pole lie in the sky directly above a. the ecliptic b. the town of Bayonne, New Jersey c. the Earth's axis d. the observer's zenith e. the Earth's equator

c. the Earth's axis d. the observer's zenith

What problem has precession caused for many of the schools of astrology? 2.4 The Birth of Modern Astronomy a. Because of precession, the stars making up the constellation figures (like Leo the Lion) have moved so far apart, they no longer look like their names b. Because of precession, Mars no longer shows retrograde motion and so all the horoscopes done using Mars turn out to be wrong c. Because of precession, some of the planets that astrologers use to construct horoscopes no longer orbit the Sun d. Because of precession, the constellations are no longer lined up with the astrological signs that are named after them; since astrology was set up, the two have slipped one sign apart e. You can't fool me, precession has not affected anything about astrology

d. Because of precession, the constellations are no longer lined up with the astrological signs that are named after them; since astrology was set up, the two have slipped one sign apart

From a city in the U.S., where in the sky would you look to see a star that is not turning with the motion of the sky in the course of a night? a. on your horizon b. at your zenith c. on the celestial equator d. at the north celestial pole e. you can't fool me, all stars appear to turn around the sky from locations in the U.S

d. at the north celestial pole

Which of the following was NOT done by Hipparchus, the great ancient astronomer? a. compiled a pioneering catalog of the positions of hundreds of stars b. created the system of star magnitudes that we still use today c. discovered that the Earth has a motion called precession d. explained retrograde motion e. you can't fool me; Hipparchus did all of the above

d. explained retrograde motion

Every celestial object appears to go around the Earth once a day. In addition to this motion, which celestial object has the fastest apparent motion in the sky? a. Mars b. the Sun c. Venus d. the Moon e. the Big Dipper

d. the Moon

The Renaissance astronomer who wrote the pioneering book that suggested the Earth probably orbits the Sun (instead of the other way around) was: a. Newton b. Ptolemy c. Eratosthenes d. Halley e. Copernicus

e. Copernicus