1) The distance that light travels in one year is
a)
an
astronomical unit
b)
a
spectrum
c)
a
light year
d)
a
tropical year
e)
the
distance to the nearest star
2)
What
kinds of electromagnetic radiation easily penetrate the earth’s atmosphere?
a)
X-rays
and UV radiation
b)
radio
and infrared
c)
visible
and radio
d)
visible
and gamma rays
e)
visible
and infrared
3)
A
metal wire heated to high temperature will emit what kind of spectrum?
a)
continuous
b)
emission
line
c)
absorption
line
4)
If
light from a blackbody passes through a cool cloud of gas and then into a
spectroscope, what kind of spectrum will be observed?
a)
continuous
b)
emission
line
c)
absorption
line
5)
What
situation will not result in an emission line spectrum?
a)
aurorae
b)
neon
gas tube light
c)
starlight
d)
a
gas cloud in space excited by ultraviolet light from a nearby star
6)
A
laboratory blackbody’s peak emission is observed at 5000 Å. If the blackbody’s
temperature is subsequently doubled, what is the new wavelength of peak
emission?
a)
5000
Å
b)
10000
Å
c)
2500
Å
d)
1000
Å
7)
The
atomic model that places electrons in definite orbits around the nucleus but
allows only certain orbits to exist is the
a)
Rutherford
model
b)
Bohr
model
c)
Thomson
model
d)
Feynman
model
8)
The
picture above shows an observer equipped with a spectrograph observing an
astronomical object that shows a redshift. Which direction is the one
unambiguous direction in which the object must be moving?
a)
direction
a
b)
direction
b
c)
direction
c
d)
direction
d
e)
no
direction: velocity = 0
9)
The
ability to distinguish details or to perceive two adjacent objects as separate
and distinct from each other is
a)
resolution
b)
reflection
c)
seeing
d)
magnification
e)
refraction
10)
The
kind of electromagnetic radiation with wavelength just longer than that of
visible light is
a)
ultraviolet
b)
ultravisible
c)
infrared
d)
microwave
11)
A
simple refracting telescope consists of an eyepiece and a(n)
a)
mirror
b)
image
plane
c)
aperture
d)
objective
lens
e)
focus
12)
A
12-meter telescope will collect ___ times as much light as a 4-meter telescope.
a)
12
b)
3
c)
9
d)
4
e)
16
13)
Recognizable
groupings of stars in the sky are called
a)
nebulae
b)
constellations
c)
clusters
d)
mythology
e)
dippers
14)
The
Earth and the sun and their relative motion define a plane that we, from our
earthbound perspective, call the
a)
equinox
b)
prime
meridian
c)
celestial
equator
d)
zodiac
e)
ecliptic
15)
Which
does not fall on the meridian?
a)
north
celestial pole
b)
south
celestial pole
c)
the
equinoxes
d)
the
zenith
e)
the
nadir
16)
The
sun reaches its maximum declination at
a)
winter
solstice
b)
autumnal
equinox
c)
summer
solstice
d)
vernal
equinox
17)
It
is March. Approximately, what is the right ascension of the full moon?
a)
0
h
b)
6
h
c)
12
h
d)
18
h
18)
It
is late June. Approximately, what is the sun’s right ascension?
a)
0
h
b)
6
h
c)
12
h
d)
18
19)
It
is late September. Approximately, what is the sun’s declination?
a)
–66.6°
b)
–23.4°
c)
0°
d)
23.4°
e)
66.6°
20)
At
sunset one evening you notice the moon high in the sky directly south. What
phase is it in?
a)
new
b)
first
quarter
c)
full
d)
last
quarter
21)
When
does a last-quarter moon rise, approximately?
a)
noon
b)
6
p.m.
c)
midnight
d)
6
a.m.
22)
When
less than half of the side of the moon facing Earth is in sunlight it is called
a
a)
quarter
moon
b)
gibbous
moon
c)
full
moon
d)
new
moon
e)
crescent
moon
****For
the next 5 questions, choose from the following list:
a) Nicholas Copernicus
b) Tycho Brahe
c) Johannes Kepler
d) Galileo Galilei
e) Isaac Newton
23)
Not
long after the death of Nicholas Copernicus, a Danish nobleman used giant
instruments to make observations of the planet’s motions with unprecedented
accuracy. This was __________.
24)
His
book that described the sun-centered universe, de Revolutionibus, was
published after his death.
25)
He
built telescopes better than anyone shortly after their invention and used them
for astronomical observations.
26)
Johannes
Kepler’s theory was based upon analysis of planet observations taken by _________.
27)
He
invented calculus, laws of physical motion, and a law of universal gravitation.
28)
When
viewed from the north, all planets revolve ____ around the sun. Most of them
rotate in this sense and have most of their satellites revolving in this sense
as well.
a)
clockwise
b)
counterclockwise
29)
When
planets drift westward against the background of stars, this motion is called
a)
retrograde
motion
b)
wandering
c)
heliacal
rising
d)
prograde
motion
e)
drift
30)
Kepler’s
first law says that planets move
a)
in
circular orbits around the Earth
b)
in
circular orbits around the sun
c)
in
elliptical orbits around the Earth
d)
in
elliptical orbits around the sun
31)
Kepler’s
second law says that
a)
there
is no physical object at the center of a planet’s elliptical orbit.
b)
P2=a3
c)
a
planet will move faster when near the sun in its orbit compared to when it is
farther from the sun.
d)
a
planet travels in an elliptical path
32)
What
discovery of Galileo’s most directly proved that Ptolemy’s geocentric model was
incorrect?
a)
the
existence of craters on the moon
b)
the
phases of Venus
c)
the
existence of sunspots
d)
the
Milky Way is made of stars
33)
A
new asteroid is discovered in a near-circular orbit at a distance of 4 A.U.
from the sun. What is its orbital period?
a)
2
years
b)
4
years
c)
8
years
d)
16
years
34)
If
the asteroid of the previous question was moved into a 1-A.U. orbit, how much
stronger would the force of gravity exerted on the asteroid by the sun be?
a)
2
times stronger
b)
4
times stronger
c)
8
times stronger
d)
16
times stronger
35)
If
the Earth had an axial tilt like that of Uranus, would our hot/cold seasonal
cycle be more intense or less intense?
a)
more
b)
less
c)
it
would stay the same
36)
The
process of forming layers within a self-gravitating sphere because of
differences in density between materials is called
a)
plate
tectonics
b)
buoyancy
c)
gravity
d)
internal
heat
e)
differentiation
37)
The
theory of the formation of the solar system is called the
a)
capture
theory
b)
solar
nebula hypothesis
c)
big
bang
d)
accretion
disk theory
38)
Which
is not a tidal effect??
a)
ocean
level fluctuations on Earth
b)
the
formation of rings from disrupted moons
c)
the
zones and bands of Jupiter are at different altitudes
d)
one
side of the moon faces Earth all the time
39)
The
ozone hole is caused by elevated levels of
a)
carbon
dioxide from fossil fuel burning
b)
chlorine
from refrigerants
c)
nitrates
from agriculture
d)
methane
from herd animals
40)
A
heavily cratered moon or asteroid must have a surface that is
a)
dense
b)
old
c)
young
d)
fluffy
e)
volcanic
41)
Global warming on earth is now considered a real
threat, probably caused by
a)
carbon
dioxide from fossil fuel burning
b)
chlorine
from refrigerants
c)
nitrates
from agriculture
d)
methane
from herd animals
42)
Venus
has an atmospheric pressure about
a)
half
that of Earth
b)
twice
that of Earth
c)
40
times that of Earth
d)
90
times that of Earth
43)
Mars
has an atmospheric pressure about
a)
half
that of Earth
b)
twice
that of Earth
c)
one
eighth that of Earth
d)
one
one-hundredth that of Earth
44)
The
youngest surface in the solar system probably belongs to
a)
Callisto
b)
Triton
c)
Earth
d)
Titan
e)
Io
45)
The
satellite with the thickest atmosphere is
a)
Io
b)
Europa
c)
Triton
d)
Titan
e)
Deimos
46)
Which
is the largest in size?
a)
Ganymede
b)
Titan
c)
Triton
d)
the
moon
e)
Europa
47)
The
primary constituent(s) of Saturn’s atmosphere is/are
a)
carbon
dioxide
b)
nitrogen
and oxygen
c)
nitrogen
and methane
d)
methane
and ammonia
e)
hydrogen
and helium
48)
Neptune
was discovered
a)
by
William Herschel
b)
mathematically
c)
by
Galileo
d)
by
accident, with a telescope
49)
Close-up
pictures of the outer planets were first returned in the ‘70s and ‘80s by a
pair spacecraft named
a)
Viking
b)
Voyager
c)
Galileo
d)
Cassini
e)
Hubble
50)
Which
planet detection method has so far yielded the most confirmed candidates for extrasolar
planets?
a)
Light
dimming from planetary transits across the face of the star.
b)
Gravitational
lens amplification of foreground stars by background planets.
c)
Tracking
the spatial wobble of the star by position (astrometric) measurements.
d)
Tracking
the spatial wobble of the star in a partial way by measuring the star’s Doppler
shift.