phs 111 final
The largest known volcano in the solar system is ________.
Olympus Mons on Mars
Based on the observed red shifts in the spectral lines of distant galaxies, astronomers conclude that ________.
the universe is expanding
A main-sequence star like our sun is expected to be stable for approximately ________.
10 billion years
________ is the principal gas in the Venusian atmosphere and also a minor component of the atmospheres of Earth and Mars.
Carbon dioxide
________ are found both on Mars and Earth.
Erosional features related to flowing water
________, a moon orbiting Jupiter, has an unusually smooth, uncratered, ice-covered surface.
Europa
This scientist was the first to use the telescope in astronomy.
Galileo
What was Hubble's major contribution to Cosmology?
He identified numerous new galaxies outside the Milky Way.
What is a popular theory for the difference in atmospheres of the Jovian planets versus terrestrial planets?
High temperatures and solar wind in the inner planets allowed most of the volatiles to be driven off the terrestrial planets, but not the Jovian planets.
What atmospheric gas is common in the outer planets but rare in the inner planets?
Hydrogen
Three laws of planetary motion were discovered by ________.
Johannes Kepler
________ has the great, dark spot on its surface.
Jupiter
________ are small, extraterrestrial particles that glow brightly and burn up as they travel through Earth's atmosphere.
Meteoroids
Which planet has the highest recorded winds in the solar system?
Neptune
The first modern astronomer to propose a Sun-centered universe was ________.
Nicolaus Copernicus
Saturn is famous for its rings. Which of the following Jovian planets does not have rings?
None, all of the Jovian planets have rings
________ has atmospheric pressures at its surface that are roughly comparable to those at Earth's surface.
Saturn's moon Titan
What man formulated the Law of Universal Gravitation?
Sir Isaac Newton
Why are there only 4-7 eclipses per year?
The moon's orbit is inclined to the ecliptic and only crosses the ecliptic twice per year.
What did the Mars rover Opportunity discover on Mars that relates to questions about the existence of water on Mars?
The rover found sedimentary rocks that contained minerals that could only have formed by precipitation from water.
What is the modern explanation for what the ancient Chinese called "guest stars"?
They are Nova or Supernova.
Why do the planets "drift" east relative to the stars and then move west for periods of time?
They are moving in the same rotation sense as the earth around the sun, but as the earth moves faster (or slower, depending on the planet) the motion appears to be backwards.
Neptune and Uranus both appear bluish in sunlight whereas Jupiter and Saturn are multicolored. Why are Neptune and Uranus blue?
They contain methane ice in their atmosphere which causes the color.
How did the Greeks estimate the size of the earth?
They measured the angle of the sun above the horizon at midday in two places with different latitude and used the angle to estimate the circumference of the earth.
Why were planets called "wanderers" by early Astronomers?
They move relative to the stars.
The surface features of ________ are known only through satellite radar mapping
Venus
The belt of constellations through which all the planets move is called the ________.
Zodiac
The Spitzer space telescope is ________.
a thermal infrared detecting telescope
The frequency of sunspots and related solar activity is ________.
an 11 year cycle
On a Hertzprung-Russell Diagram, our Sun is classified as ________.
an average star
Visible light is a small part of the electromagnetic spectrum, but when we see colors, we are seeing ________.
an even narrow range of wavelengths than white light within the visible light spectrum
A very slow motion of Earth's axis that requires 26,000 years to complete is called ________.
axial precession
Which color stars have the highest surface temperature?
blue
Which main-sequence stars are the most massive?
blue
A Hertzsprung-Russell diagram (H-R Diagram) is a plot of ________.
brightness versus temperature
Because lenses act like a prism to separate the colors of the spectrum, they produce a troublesome effect known as ________.
chromatic aberration
The layer of the solar atmosphere directly above the photosphere is referred to as the ________.
chromosphere
A red star is ________ our Sun.
colder and smaller than
The type of spectrum produced by a common light bulb is a ________.
continuous spectrum
The outermost layer of the Sun is called the _______.
corona
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
In the Ptolemaic (Greek) model of the universe, the ________.
earth was in the center of the universe
One of the discoveries which led to the modern view of the solar system was that the orbits of the planets are ________.
elipses
The largest known galaxies are ________.
elliptical
Balance for a main sequence star is achieved when ________.
gravitational collapse matches gas pressure
Which of the following is not considered a form of electromagnetic radiation?
gravity
A blue star is ________ our Sun.
hotter and larger than
Interstellar matter is composed primarily of ________.
hydrogen
The Sun produces energy by converting ________.
hydrogen nuclei to helium nuclei
Several of the moons of Saturn, Uranus and Neptune display evidence of volcanic activity. What is the most common type of volcano on these moons?
ice volcanos
Most of the mass in the solar system is contained ________.
in the sun
A comet is visible because ________.
it is a small object, but it ejects gas and dust that at is dispersed by the solar wind to form a tail thousands of km long
Most stars are in this stage of evolution.
main-sequence star
The Sun belongs to this class of stars.
main-sequence star
What is the main factor that determines what will happen to a star after it consumes all of its nuclear fuel?
mass
The densest stars known to exist are ________.
neuron stars
A total eclipse of the Sun is only possible at ________.
new moon
The source of the Sun's energy is ________.
nuclear fusion
Electromagnetic radiation that behaves like a particle is called a(n) ________
photon
The layer of the Sun that radiates most of the light that reaches Earth is called the ________.
photosphere
During periods of high solar activity, huge cloudlike structures that appear as great arches extending from the Sun are often produced. These solar features are called ________.
prominences
Which color stars have the coolest surface temperature?
red
Which main-sequence stars are the least massive?Term
red
Which of the following colors has the longest wavelength?
red
If a yellow star is moving away from us very rapidly, what color will it appear to be?
reddish orange
Nearly all large optical telescopes built today are ________.
reflectors
The apparent westward "drift" of the planets compared to the background stars is called ________.
retrograde motion
The ________ day is the time it takes for Earth to make one complete rotation with respect to a star other than our Sun.
sidereal
The most explosive events to occur on the Sun are ________.
solar flares
The period of time required for the Moon to complete a cycle of phases is called the ________ month.
synodic
To determine whether a celestial body is approaching or receding from Earth, astronomers employ ________.
the Doppler principle
The solar wind originates from ________.
the corona
Most of the Moon's craters were produced by ________.
the impact of meteoroids
Streams of protons and electrons emitted from the Sun produce ________.
the solar wind
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
The high surface temperatures of ________ have been attributed to the greenhouse effect.
venus
Which planet rotates the opposite direction it revolves around the sun?
venus
The point in stellar evolution when a star has used up all its fuel and is radiating away its remaining thermal energy as light is the ________ stage.
white dwarf