PHS 107 - ASSIGNMENT B

The celestial sphere turns once around each day because: A) the planet on which we live is rotating B) the Earth is going around the Sun C) the phases of the Moon D) precession E) everything in the universe turns around the Earth

A) the planet on which we live is rotating

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

C) the Earth's axis is tilted by about 23 degrees from the vertical

Which of the ancient Greek thinker suggested (long before Copernicus) that Earth is moving around the Sun? A) Aristotle B) Aristarchus C) Eratosthenes D) Hipparchus E) Zorba

B) Aristarchus

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

According to the geocentric view, everything in the heavens had to go around the Earth, which was the center of the universe. What objects did Galileo discover with his telescope that clearly didn't go around the Earth? A) stars in the Milky Way that just keep going in a straight line B) moons around the planet Jupiter C) a ring around the Sun E) Pluto

B) moons around the planet Jupiter

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

The point in the sky directly above your head at any given time is called: A) nadir B) zenith C) celestial pole D) horizon point E) bald spot

B) zenith

As seen from the continental United States, the Big and Little Dipper: A) are below the horizon throughout the year B) are at the zenith throughout the year C) are on the celestial equator throughout the year D) are in the north circumpolar zone throughout the year E) none of the above

D) are in the north circumpolar zone throughout the year

The strip of the sky through which the Sun, the Moon, and the bright planets appear to move in the course of a year is called: A) the zodiac B) the celestial equator C) the circumpolar zone D) the horizon E) the asteroid belt

A) the zodiac

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 (Egoian)

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 tilt of the Earth's axis E) the temperature at midnight

B) latitude of the observer

Someone who observes the sky every clear night in Boston for many years will NEVER get to see: A) the south circumpolar zone B) the north celestial pole C) the observer's zenith point D) the north circumpolar zone E) the Big Dipper

A) the south circumpolar zone

Which of the following is NOT a result of the Earth's precession? A) the Earth wobbles (like a spinning top) with a period of 26,000 years B) where the Earth's axis points in the sky changes over the centuries and millennia C) Polaris will no longer be the North Star in several thousand years D) the stars twinkle when seen from the surface of planet Earth E) the signs of the zodiac most astrologers use are no longer in accord with the constellations in which the Sun is currently found over the course of the year

D) the stars twinkle when seen from the surface of planet Earth

Which of the following was NOT done by Galileo Galilei? A) turning the telescope to teh sky and believing what it showed his eyes B) discovering four large moons around Jupiter C) discovering that Venus goes through phases (like the Moon) D) resolving the Milky Way into many, many stars E) explaining retrograde motion with the heliocentric hypothesis

E) explaining retrograde motion with the heliocentric hypothesis

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 E) Alfonso the Wise

C) Ptolemy

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

On the celestial sphere, halfway between the celestial poles lies the: A) horizon B) zenith for all observers C) celestial equator D) path of the Sun on any given day E) celestial hungarian

C) celestial equator

When a planet temporarily moves westward in the sky over the course of several weeks or months (instead of eastward, as it typically does), we call it: A) precession B) ecliptic motion C) retrograde motion D) circumpolar motion E) rude

C) retrograde motion

A graduate student in geology who grew up in Florida (near the southernmost tip of the United States) gets to accompany her research professor to the North Pole. What will be different at the North Pole from the way she remembers the sky in Florida? A) the celestial pole is overhead B) the celestial equator is on the horizon C) the way (and if) the stars rise or set D) all of the above would be different from the way it is in Florida E) all of the above (a-c) would be the same as in Florida

D) all of the above would be different from the way it is in Florida

The south celestial pole and the north celestial pole lie in the sky directly above: A) the Earth's equator B) the observer's zenith C) the ecliptic D) the Earth's axis E) Pittsburgh

D) the Earth's axis

Some Canadian troops are sent (as part of a U.N peacekeeping force) to a country located on the Earth's equator. At night, which 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 the 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

What problem has precession caused for many of the schools of astrology? 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) 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

In Copernicus' day, people were worried about the idea that the celestial sphere seems to turn around us once a day because the Earth rotates. They argued that if the Earth were to rotate to 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 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) 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

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) all of the stars appear to turn around the sky from locations in the U.S.

D) at the north celestial pole

How did Eratosthenes measure the size of the Earth? A) by walking about one-quarter of the way around its circumference B) by measuring the times of sunrise in each of the four seasons C) by determining the parallax of the Moon and finding the size of its orbit D) by measuring the height of the Sun in the sky on the same day in two cities at different latitudes E) by asking Aristotle who knew everything

D) by measuring the height of the Sun in the sky on the same day in two cities at different latitudes

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 motion called precession D) explained retrograde motion E) Hipparchus did all of these things

D) explained retrograde motion

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 circles whose center, in turn, circled a point near the Earth E) 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