ASTR 100 Exam 3 (Final)

Which of the following is NOT a difference between spiral and elliptical galaxies? A. Spiral galaxies are younger, whereas elliptical galaxies are older. B. Spiral galaxies contain lots of gas and dust, whereas elliptical galaxies do not. C. Spiral galaxies still have ongoing star formation, whereas elliptical galaxies do not. D. Spiral galaxies tend to be bluish, whereas elliptical galaxies tend to be reddish.

A. Spiral galaxies are younger, whereas elliptical galaxies are older.

In spiral galaxies, where do you expect to see ongoing star formation? A. The disk B. The bulge C. The halo

A. The Disk

What is the period of the wobble? A. The same as the planet's orbital period B. Related to the rotation of the star C. Less than the planet's orbital period D. More than the planet's orbital period

A. The same as the planet's orbital period

There can be alien civilizations outside the observable Universe. A. True B. False

A. True

If globular clusters are uniformly distributed in the Galaxy and we are in the center of the Galaxy, what would have Shapley have seen? A. Uniform globular clusters all over the sky. B. Globular clusters concentrated more toward one location of the sky. C. Globular clusters in a single direction only.

A. Uniform globular clusters all over the sky.

A race car with a white headlight drives straight at you at over 200 mph. What color do you see the headlights? A. White B. Blue C. Red

A. White

Does the Milky Way have a supermassive black hole? A. Yes B. No

A. Yes

Has any creature been able to communicate with humans and even count various shapes or textures up to six? A. Yes B. No

A. Yes (i.e. Alex the Parrot)

Which galaxy has likely had more collisions in its lifetime? A. An isolated irregular galaxy. B. A giant elliptical in the center of a rich galaxy cluster. C. A large spiral galaxy in the center of a poor galaxy cluster. D. An isolated average-sized spiral galaxy.

B. A giant elliptical in the center of a rich galaxy cluster.

Which one of these systems has the largest wobble on the larger object? A. Sumo wrestler and a baby holding hands and twirling B. A mother and a baby holding hands and twirling

B. A mother and a baby holding hands and twirling

What happens to the temperature of the Universe when it is being compressed? A. Stays the same. B. Gets hotter and hotter. C. Gets cooler and cooler.

B. Gets hotter and hotter.

How does the frequency of the sound change compared to a siren at rest? A. The same B. Higher C. Lower

B. Higher

The early Universe did not have any helium because? A. It wasn't hot enough before. B. It wasn't cool enough before.

B. It wasn't cool enough before.

What is a problem with the transit method? A. Too slow B. Need the star and planet aligned along our line of sight C. Requires stars to be nearby

B. Need the star and planet aligned along our line of sight

Will the Drake Equation tell us the precise number of aliens in the Milky Way? A. Yes B. No

B. No (only guide our thinking)

What would life around the first stars be like? A. Probably about the same as on Earth. B. No life could exist. C. It would use different elements to create life. D. It would be alien.

B. No life could exist.

Where does the iron in your blood come from? A. The Big Bang. B. Supernovae of the first stars. C. It was always around.

B. Supernovae of the first stars.

An astronomer observes a young star with a very eccentric orbit around the Galaxy. Where is the star most likely located? A.The Disk B.The Bulge C.The Halo

B. The Bulge

Compare the habitable zone of a B star and a G main sequence star: A. The B star's habitable zone is closer to the star. B. The G star's habitable zone is closer to the star. C. The habitable zone is the same for both stars.

B. The G star's habitable zone is closer to the star.

If the Herschels had used an infrared telescope and detector, how would their results have changed? A. No change B. The Sun would not be the center of the Galaxy C. They would have seen less stars since dust would make the stars harder to see in the infrared.

B. The Sun would not be the center of the Galaxy

What is Dark Energy doing to the Universe?

Making the Universe expand faster now than it was billions of years ago.

Is Mars, Jupiter's moon Europa, or Saturn's moon Titan in the habitable zone of the Sun?

No, the habitable zone does not extend beyond Earth.

What does Hubble's Law tell us about the Universe?

That the Universe is expanding.

Which of the following is NOT evidence of dark matter?

Unseen mass particles in the LHC (Large Hadron Collider) particle smasher.

What causes our Milky Way to have spiral arms?

A spiral density wave in the galaxy where stars enter and slow down slightly, causing a small over-density that looks like a constant feature

Where in the Milky Way would you find most of the globular clusters? A. In the halo B. In the galactic center C. In the bulge D. In the spiral arms E. In the galactic bar

A. In the halo

Why don't our astronomers believe that these gas giant planets originally formed at these locations? A. Their orbital periods are too long for them to be located that close to their companion stars. B. The temperature in the early solar nebula was too high at these distances for ices to condense. C. A young star's solar wind would have blown the planets farther away. D. During condensation, the heavier elements tend to sink nearer the forming star and, being rare, only provide enough material to build relatively small rocky planets.

B. The temperature in the early solar nebula was too high at these distances for ices to condense.

Why are solvents crucial for life? A. They are not. Only water is important. B. They allow chemistry to occur easily. C. They allow protection for DNA.

B. They allow chemistry to occur easily.

Which of the following is NOT a characteristic of a spiral galaxy? A. a mixture of young and old stars. B. only disorganized stellar motions. C. a halo. D. a central bulge. E. a dust disk with ongoing star formation.

B. only disorganized stellar motions.

Where did the Big Bang happen? A. Only at the edge of the observable Universe B. At Kam's on Saturday night C. In your bedroom, 13.7 billion years ago

C. In your bedroom, 13.7 billion years ago (it happened everywhere)

A low-density cloud enters the spiral arm. What will happen to it? A. It will quickly leave the other side. B. It will be stuck in the gravity of all of the stars. C. It will be compressed and will likely form stars.

C. It will be compressed and will likely form stars.

Why don't galaxies, the solar system, or people expand? A. We do expand. B. They are held together by some mysterious force. C. They are held together by stronger local forces.

C. They are held together by stronger local forces.

The power source of quasars (galaxies with very bright nuclei) is? A. super star clusters of billions of stars. B. a gigantic squirrel in a large wheel. C. a supermassive black hole with an acceleration disk. D. black hole clusters. E. bursts of star formation.

C. a supermassive black hole with an acceleration disk.

When the astronomer Edwin Hubble looked at the Doppler effect of many galaxies using sensitive equipment, what do you think he found? A. No velocity differences. B. Half of the galaxies are redshifted and half of the galaxies are blueshifted. C. All galaxies are blueshifted. D. All galaxies are redshifted.

D. All galaxies are redshifted.

Is intelligence the pinnacle of evolution? A. Yes. Once intelligence is reached, evolution stops. B. No. The pinnacle of evolution is more than just intelligence but also telepathy. C. Yes. And now that an intelligent species exists, other niches can be filled. D. No. Intelligence is a niche, like many other characteristics.

D. No. Intelligence is a niche, like many other characteristics.

What physical parameter can one get about an exoplanet from the transit method of exoplanet discovery? A. Composition B. Axis tilt C. Density D. Radius E. Mass

D. Radius

If the Universe is infinite, then it contains an infinite number of stars. So, why is the night sky dark? A. The dust clouds in interstellar space block the light. B. The Universe has a physical edge, beyond which there is nothing. C. The distant stars might be too small and far away to be seen. D. The Universe is finite in age.

D. The Universe is finite in age.

If you time traveled using a blue police box back in time to the start of life on Earth, what would happen on the Earth's surface? A. You would destroy the fragile life. B. You would probably change history. C. You would have a clear glimpse of early life. D. You would suffocate and die.

D. You would suffocate and die (no oxygen yet)

The fact that we find O and B stars in the disk of our Galaxy but not the halo suggests that: A. halo stars have a higher metal content than disk stars. B. only low-mass stars formed in the halo. C. dust blocks our view of these stars in the halo. D. star formation still occurs in the disk, but not the halo.

D. star formation still occurs in the disk, but not the halo.

The exoplanets known today suggest: A. our Solar System is unusual. B. that all planets likely have moons. C. that planets are rare. D. that Earth-like planets are common. E. that Jupiter-like planets are common.

D. that Earth-like planets are common.

When the Milky Way and Andromeda collide, what is likely to happen? A. Stars crash into each other B. Gravitational pull greatly distorts each galaxy C. Starbursts-greatly enhanced star formation-may occur D. All of the above E. Only B and C

E. Only B and C: -Gravitational pull greatly distorts each galaxy -Starbursts-greatly enhanced star formation-may occur

The CMB (Cosmic Microwave Background) is?

an image of the afterglow of the Big Bang.