Chapter 21 : Origins of Modern Astronomy

The ancient Greeks proposed an ________-centered view of the universe.

Earth

In the Ptolemaic (Greek) model of the universe, ________.

Earth was in the center of the universe

________ discovered Jupiter's four largest moons

Galileo

________ was convicted of heresy for his views of the universe

Galileo

Tycho Brahe set out to disprove Copernicus, so why is he famous for developing modern astronomical theory

He made very precise measurements that were key data used by Kepler.

Earth is closest to the Sun in ________.

January

The true shape of the planetary orbits was discovered by ________.

Johannes Kepler

________ discovered the three laws of planetary motion.

Kepler

Alpha Centauri is a famous star because it is one of the closest stars to earth (other than the Sun of course). Where would you look in the night sky for Alpha Centauri?

Look for the brightest star in the constellation Centaurus.

Using the telescope, Galileo discovered that the planet ________ had polar ice caps not unlike those on Earth.

Mars

The first modern astronomer to propose a Sun-centered universe was ________.

Nicolaus Copernicus

Who wrote the book entitled Of the Revolutions of Celestial Spheres (De Revolutionibus)?

Nicolaus Copernicus

The Big Dipper is near the ________ celestial pole.

North

Why were planets called "wanderers" by early astronomers

They move relative to the stars.

The belt of constellations through which all the planets move is called the ________.

Zodiac

When Earth is the farthest from the Sun, it is said to be in the ________ position.

aphelion

A very slow motion of Earth's axis that requires 26,000 years to complete is called ________.

axial precession

The earliest astronomical records appear to have been made by the ancient Chinese, Egyptians, and Babylonians in order to ________

determine when to plant crops or hunt animals based on seasonal changes

Planets appear to move ________ each night, but occasionally they appear to stop and reverse direction

eastward

The apparent path of the Sun upon the celestial sphere is called the ________.

ecliptic

One of the discoveries which led to the modern view of the solar system was that the orbits of the planets are ________.

ellipses

A total eclipse of the Sun is only possible at ________.

new Moon

When the Moon appears as a thin crescent in the evening sky, just after Sunset, the lunar phase is ________.

new Moon

Think about the correlation of the celestial coordinate system, the tilt of Earth's axis, and the positions on Earth. If you are an observer in the Southern Hemisphere, 2 degrees north of the Tropic of Capricorn, What time of year will you be able to see the North Star?

on the Southern Hemisphere summer solstice, around Dec. 21

Examine the words and/or phrases below and determine the relationship among the majority of words/phrases. Choose the option that does not fit the pattern.

perihelion

Kepler said that the ________ go(es) around the ________ on ________ orbits.

planets; Sun; elliptical

According to the Ptolemaic (Greek) model of the universe, how many "heavenly" bodies could be observed wandering along the background of stars

seven

The ________ day is the time it takes for Earth to make one complete rotation with respect to a star other than our Sun.

sidereal

Which astronomical event is featured in this picture

the arrival of Haley's Comet

An eclipse of the Moon can be seen by anyone on ________.

the side of Earth facing the Moon at that time

Galileo observed several features using the telescope. Which one of the following did he not discover?

the two moons of Mars

The length of daylight on the Moon is about ________.

two weeks