Astronomy - Ch. 0 - Ch. 3

Radio telescopes are useful because a) observations can be made day & night. b) we can see objects that don't emit visible light. c) radio waves are not blocked by interstellar dust. d) they can be linked to form interferometers. e) All of the above are true.

e. all of the above

A major flaw in Copernicus's model was that it still had a. the Sun at the center b. Earth at the center c. retrograde loops d. circular orbits

d. circular orbits

In Figure 2.20 (Atomic Excitation), the total energy of the two photons emitted in the branch at the lower right is a. greater than b. less than c. approximately equal to d. exactly equal to the energy of the UV photon absorbed at the left

d. exactly equal to

Rigel appears as a bright bluish star, whereas Betelgeuse appears as a bright reddish star. Rigel is ______ Betelgeuse. a) cooler than b) the same temperature as c) older than d) hotter than e) more massive than

d. hotter than

Newton's law of gravity states that the force between two objects a) increases with distance. b) depends on the state of matter (solid, liquid, or gas). c) can be attractive or repulsive. d) increases with mass.

d. increases with mass

The main reason that most professional research telescopes are reflectors is that a. mirror produce sharper images than lenses do b. their images are inverted c. they do not suffer from the effects of seeing d. large mirrors are easier to build than large lenses

d. large mirrors are easier to build than large lenses

At a football game, the "wave" might circulate through the stands and move around the stadium. In this wave motion, people stand up and sit down as the wave passes. What type of wave would this be characterized as? a) polarized wave b) longitudinal wave c) lateral wave d) transverse wave e) soliton wave

d. transverse wave

What types of electro-magnetic radiation from space reach the surface of Earth? a) radio & microwaves b) X rays & ultraviolet light c) infrared & gamma rays d) visible light & radio waves e) visible & ultraviolet light

d. visible light and radio waves

An advantage of CCDs over photographic film is a) they don't require chemical development. b) digital data is easily stored & transmitted. c) CCDs are more light sensitive than film. d) CCD images can be developed faster. e) All of the above are true.

e. all of the above

How long (s) would a radar signal take to complete the round-trip between Earth and Mars when the planets are 1.1 AU apart?

1100 s

What is the wavelength of a 110-MHz radio signal?

2.7273 m

A long, thin cloud that stretched from directly overhead to the western horizon would have an angular size of a. 45 degrees b. 90 degrees c. 180 degrees d. 360 degrees

B. 90 degrees

If Earth rotated twice as fast as it currently does, but its motion around the sun stayed the same, then a. the night would be twice as long b. the night would be half as long c. the year would be half as long d. the length of the day would be unchanged

B. the night would be half as long

(T/F) Aristotle proposed that all planets revolve around the Sun.

False

(T/F) Copernicus's theories gained widespread scientific acceptance during his life time.

False

(T/F) During retrograde motion, planets actually stop and move backward in space.

False

(T/F) Galileo's observations of the sky were made with the naked eye.

False

(T/F) If we know the distance of an object from Earth, we can determine the object's size by measuring its parallax.

False

(T/F) Imagine an emission spectrum produced by a container of hydrogen gas. Changing the amount of hydrogen in the container will change the colors of the lines in the spectrum.

False

(T/F) Kepler's laws hold only for the six planet known in his time.

False

(T/F) The Milky Way Galaxy is about 1 million times larger than Earth.

False

(T/F) The heliocentric model holds that the Earth is at the center and everything else moves around it.

False

(T/F) The seasons are caused by the precession of Earth's axis.

False

(T/F) The speed of a planet orbiting the Sun is independent of the planet's position in its orbit.

False

(T/F) The stars in a constellation are physically close to one another.

False

Because gamma rays have very short wavelengths, gamma-ray telescopes can achieve extremely high angular resolution.

False

Gamma-ray telescopes employ the same basic design that optical instruments use.

False

Infrared astronomy can only be done from space.

False

The main advantage to using the HST is the increased amount of "nighttime" viewing it affords.

False

The term "seeing" is used to describe how faint an object can be detected by a telescope.

False

The wavelength of green light is about the size of an atom.

False

If the moon orbit were a little larger, solar eclipses would be a. more likely to be annular b. more likely to be total c. more frequent d. unchanged in appearance

a. more likely to be annular

A star much cooler than the Sun would appear a. red b. blue c. smaller d. larger

a. red

When light hits a barrier edge, what happen to the light that passes by?

Light bends around the barrier; diffraction

When multiple radio telescopes are used for interferometry, resolving power is most improved by increasing a. the distance between telescopes b. the number of telescopes in a given area c. the diameter of each telescope d. the electrical power supplied to each telescope.

a. the distance between telescopes

Considering the Moon's phases, everyone on Earth sees a) the same phase in 24 hours. b) different phases in 24 hours. c) a lunar eclipse once a month. d) different sides of the Moon.

a. the same phase in 24 hours.

Compared with ultraviolet radiation, infrared radiation has a greater a. wavelength b. amplitude c. frequency d. energy

a. wavelength

The distance between successive wave crests defines the ________ of a wave. a) wavelength b) frequency c) period d) amplitude e) energy

a. wavelength

(T/F) A lunar eclipse can occur only during the full phase.

True

(T/F) The angular diameter of an object is inversely proportional to its distance from the observer.

True

(T/F) The solar day is longer than the sidereal day.

True

(T/F) You throw a baseball to someone; before the ball is caught, it is temporarily in orbit around Earth's center.

True

An electron moves to a higher energy level in an atom after absorbing a photon of a specific energy.

True

As you drive away from a radio transmitter, the radio signal you receive from the station is shifted to longer wavelengths.

True

Imagine an emission spectrum produced by a container of hydrogen gas. Changing the gas in the container from hydrogen to helium will change the colors of the lines in the spectrum.

True

One of the primary advantages of CCDs over photographic plates is the former's high efficiency in detecting light.

True

Radio telescopes are large in part to improve their angular resolution, which is poor because of the long wavelengths at which they are used to observe the skies.

True

The energy of a photon is inversely proportional to the wavelength of the radiation.

True

Two otherwise identical objects have temperatures of 1000 K and 1200 K respectively. The object at 1200 K emits roughly twice as much radiation as the object at 1000 K.

True

Astronomers analyze starlight to determine a star's a. temperature b. composition c. motion d. all of the above

d. all of the above

In Figure 0.20, (Parallax), a smaller Earth would result in a. a smaller parallax angle b. a shorter distance measured to the object c. a larger apparent displacement d. stars appearing closer together

a. a smaller parallax

Diffraction is the tendency of light to a) bend around corners and edges. b) separate into its component colors. c) bend through a lens. d) disperse within a prism. e) reflect off a mirror.

a. bend around corners and edges

Figure 1.17, showing the motion of a ball near Earth's surface, depicts how gravity a. causes the ball to accelerate downward. b. has no effect on the ball. c. increases with altitude. d. causes the ball to accelerate upward.

a. causes the ball to accelerate downward.

An asteroid with an orbit lying entirely inside Earth's a. has an orbital semimajor axis of less than 1 AU b. has a longer orbital period than Earth's c. moves more slowly than Earth d. has a highly eccentric orbit

a. has an orbital semimajor axis of less than 1 AU

According to Figure 2.11 (Blackbody Curves), an object having a temperature of 1000 K emits mostly a. infrared light b. visible light c. ultraviolet light d. X-rays

a. infrared light

Earth is closer to the Sun in January. From this fact, Kepler's 2nd law tells us a) Earth orbits slower in January. b) Earth orbits faster in January. c) Earth's orbital speed doesn't change.

b. Earth orbits faster in January.

Who published the first astronomical observations made with a telescope? a) Hipparchus b) Galileo c) Aristotle d) Copernicus e) Kepler

b. Galileo

In Figure 0.19, (Triangulation), using a longer baseline would result in a. a less accurate distance to the tree b. a more accurate distance to the tree c. a smaller angle at point b d. a greater distance across the river

b. a more accurate distance to the tree

The wavelengths of emission lines produced by an element a) depend on its temperature. b) are identical to its absorption lines. c) depend on its density. d) are different than its absorption lines. e) depend on its intensity.

b. are identical to its absorption lines

The best way to study young stars hidden behind interstellar dust clouds would be to use a. X-rays b. infrared light c. ultraviolet light d. blue light

b. infrared light

As shown in Figure 1.8 (Venus Phases), Galileo's observations demonstrated that Venus must be a. orbiting Earth b. orbiting the Sun c. larger than Earth d. similar to the Moon

b. orbiting the Sun

The image shown in Figure 3.12 (Resolution) is sharpest when the ratio of wavelength to telescope size is a. larger b. small c. close to one d. none of these

b. small

The blackbody curve of a star moving toward Earth would have its peak shifted a. to lower intensity b. toward higher energies c. toward longer wavelengths d. toward lower energies

b. toward higher energies

Copernicus' important contribution to astronomy was a) proving planets move around the Sun in elliptical orbits. b) the theory of gravity. c) proposing a model that easily explained the retrograde motions of the planets. d) discovering the Sun was not at the center of the Milky Way. e) discovering the four moons of Jupiter.

c) proposing a model that easily explained the retrograde motions of the planets.

An accurate sketch of Mar's orbit around the Sun would show a. the Sun far off center b. an oval twice as long as it is wide c. a nearly perfect circle d. phases

c. a nearly perfect circle

Gravity is a) sometimes a repulsive force and sometimes an attractive force. b) always a repulsive force. c) always an attractive force. d) none of the above.

c. always an attractive force

The visible spectrum of sunlight reflected from Saturn's cold moon Titan would be expected to be a. continuous b. an emission spectrum c. an absorption spectrum

c. an absorption spectrum

A total lunar eclipse occurs a) during the new moon phase. b) when the Sun blocks the Moon. c) during the full moon phase. d) always around the summer solstice

c. during the full moon phase

Table 3.1 (Astronomy at Many Wavelengths) suggests that the best frequency range in which to study the hot (million-kelvin) gas found among the galaxies in the Virgo cluster would be a. at radio frequencies b. in the infrared c. in X-rays d. in gamma rays

c. in X-rays

You are gradually heating a lump of rock in an oven to extremely high temperatures. As it heats up, the lump emits nearly perfect theoretical blackbody radiation, meaning that it a) is brightest when hottest. b) is bluer when hotter. c) is both (a) and (b). d) is neither.

c. is both a and b

If a light source is approaching you, you will observe a) its spectral lines are redshifted. b) the light is much brighter. c) its spectral lines are shorter in wavelength. d) the amplitude of its waves has increased. e) its photons have increased in speed.

c. its spectral lines are shorter in wavelength

If Earth's orbit around the Sun were to double in size, the new "year" would be a. less than 2 b. 2 c. more than 2 d. more than 2 current Earth years

c. more than 2

The primary reason professional observatories are built on the highest mountaintops is to a. get away from city lights b. be above rain clouds c. reduce atmospheric blurring d. improve chromatic aberration

c. reduce atmosphere blurring

Which of these is NOT a form of electromagnetic radiation? a) gamma rays b) infrared c) sound d) visible light e) radio

c. sound

If the moon orbited Earth twice as fast, but in the same orbit, the frequency of the solar eclipses would a. double b. be cut in half c. stay the same

c. stay the same

What causes Earth's seasons? a) Wobble of Earth's rotation axis b) the greenhouse effect c) 23.5° tilt of Earth's rotational axis d) movement of Earth closer to or farther from the Sun e) global warming and cooling

c. the 23.5 degrees tilt of Earth's rotational axis

A calculation of how long it takes a planet to orbit the Sun would be most closely related to Kepler's a. first law of orbital shapes b. second law of orbital speeds c. third law of planetary distances d. first law of inertia

c. third law of planetary distances

When a thin crescent of the moon is visible just before sunrise, the moon is in its a. waxing phase b. new phase c. waning phase d. quarter phase

c. waning phase

According to Figure 0.8, the Zodiac, in January the sun is in the constellation a. Cancer b. Gemini c. Leo d. Aquarius

d. Aquarius

The Spitzer Space Telescope is stationed far from Earth because a. this increases the telescope's field of view b. the telescope is sensitive to electromagnetic interference form terrestrial radio stations c. doing so avoids the obscuring effects of Earth's atmosphere d. Earth is a heat source and the telescope must be kept very cool

d. Earth is a heat source and the telescope must be kept very cool

An X-ray telescope located in Antarctica would not work well because of a. the extreme cold b. the ozone hole c. continuous daylight d. Earth's atmosphere

d. Earth's atmosphere

The Hubble Space Telescope (HST) offers sharper images than ground telescopes primarily because a) HST is closer to planets & stars. b) HST uses a larger primary mirror. c) it gathers X-ray light. d) HST orbits above the atmosphere. e) it stays on the nighttime side of Earth.

d. HST orbits above the atmosphere

If telescope mirrors could be made in odd sizes, the one with the most light-gathering power would be a. a triangle with 1-m sides b. a square with 1-m sides c. a circle 1 m in diameter d. a rectangle with two 1-m sides and two 2-m sides

d. a rectangle with two 1-m and two 2-m sides

Infrared telescopes are very useful for observing a) pulsars & black holes. b) from locations on the ground. c) hot stars & intergalactic gas. d) neutron stars. e) cool stars & star-forming regions

e. cool stars and star forming regions

Constellations (and the moon) appear to move across the sky at night because a) the Earth orbits the Sun. b) the Moon orbits the Earth. c) stars are in constant motion. d) the Sun orbits the Earth. e) the Earth spins on its axis.

e. the Earth spins on its axis

How did the geocentric model account for day and night on Earth? a) The Earth rotated. b) The Sun rotated. c) The geocentric model couldn't account for day and night. d) The Earth revolved around the Sun. e) The Sun orbited Earth.

e. the Sun orbited Earth

What is the path that the Sun, Moon, and planets follow through the constellations? a) the celestial equator b) the north celestial pole c) the Milky Way d) the zodiac e) the ecliptic

e. the ecliptic