ASTRONOMY 1010 EXAM PREP QUESTIONS
AND ANSWERS EXPERT VERIFIED
MATERIAL
●● How are galaxies important to our existence?
Answer: Galaxies recycle material from one generation of stars to the
next, and without this recycling we could not exist.
●● When we look at an object that is 1,000 light-years away we see it
_________.
Answer: as it was 1,000 years ago
●● Suppose we look at two distant galaxies: Galaxy 1 is twice as far
away as Galaxy 2. In that case _________.
Answer: we are seeing Galaxy 1 as it looked at an earlier time in the
history of the universe than Galaxy 2
●● Suppose we make a scale model of our solar system, with the Sun
the size of a grapefruit. Which of the following best describes what the
planets would look like?
Answer: The planets are all much smaller than the Sun. Four planets are
within about 20 meters of the Sun, while the rest planets are spread
much farther apart.
,●● If you could count stars at a rate of about one per second, how long
would it take to count all the stars in the Milky Way Galaxy?
Answer: Several thousand years
●● The total number of stars in the observable universe is about
_________.
Answer: the same as the number of grains of sand on all the beaches on
Earth
●● Where is our solar system located within the Milky Way Galaxy?
Answer: Roughly halfway between the center and the edge of the visible
disk of the galaxy
●● If we imagine the history of the universe compressed into one year,
dinosaurs became extinct _________.
Answer: yesterday morning
●● Relative to the age of the universe, how old is our solar system
Answer: It is about one-third the age of the universe.
●● How do the speeds at which we are moving with Earth's rotation and
orbit compare to the speeds of more familiar objects?
, Answer: Earth's rotation carries most people around the axis faster than
a commercial jet travels, and Earth's orbit carries us around the Sun
faster than the Space Shuttle orbits Earth.
●● Why do the patterns of the stars in our sky look the same from year
to year?
Answer: Because the stars in the constellations are so far away.
●● Astronomers infer that the universe is expanding because distant
galaxies all appear to _________.
Answer: be moving away from us, with more distant ones moving faster
●● Which statement about motion in the universe is not true?
Answer: The mysterious dark matter is the fastest-moving material in
the universe.
●● Which statement about motion in the universe is true?
Answer: Your speed of rotation around Earth's axis is faster if you live
near the equator than if you live near the North Pole.
●● Which statement about motion in the universe is true?
Answer: Some stars in the Milky Way Galaxy are moving toward us and
others are moving away from us.
AND ANSWERS EXPERT VERIFIED
MATERIAL
●● How are galaxies important to our existence?
Answer: Galaxies recycle material from one generation of stars to the
next, and without this recycling we could not exist.
●● When we look at an object that is 1,000 light-years away we see it
_________.
Answer: as it was 1,000 years ago
●● Suppose we look at two distant galaxies: Galaxy 1 is twice as far
away as Galaxy 2. In that case _________.
Answer: we are seeing Galaxy 1 as it looked at an earlier time in the
history of the universe than Galaxy 2
●● Suppose we make a scale model of our solar system, with the Sun
the size of a grapefruit. Which of the following best describes what the
planets would look like?
Answer: The planets are all much smaller than the Sun. Four planets are
within about 20 meters of the Sun, while the rest planets are spread
much farther apart.
,●● If you could count stars at a rate of about one per second, how long
would it take to count all the stars in the Milky Way Galaxy?
Answer: Several thousand years
●● The total number of stars in the observable universe is about
_________.
Answer: the same as the number of grains of sand on all the beaches on
Earth
●● Where is our solar system located within the Milky Way Galaxy?
Answer: Roughly halfway between the center and the edge of the visible
disk of the galaxy
●● If we imagine the history of the universe compressed into one year,
dinosaurs became extinct _________.
Answer: yesterday morning
●● Relative to the age of the universe, how old is our solar system
Answer: It is about one-third the age of the universe.
●● How do the speeds at which we are moving with Earth's rotation and
orbit compare to the speeds of more familiar objects?
, Answer: Earth's rotation carries most people around the axis faster than
a commercial jet travels, and Earth's orbit carries us around the Sun
faster than the Space Shuttle orbits Earth.
●● Why do the patterns of the stars in our sky look the same from year
to year?
Answer: Because the stars in the constellations are so far away.
●● Astronomers infer that the universe is expanding because distant
galaxies all appear to _________.
Answer: be moving away from us, with more distant ones moving faster
●● Which statement about motion in the universe is not true?
Answer: The mysterious dark matter is the fastest-moving material in
the universe.
●● Which statement about motion in the universe is true?
Answer: Your speed of rotation around Earth's axis is faster if you live
near the equator than if you live near the North Pole.
●● Which statement about motion in the universe is true?
Answer: Some stars in the Milky Way Galaxy are moving toward us and
others are moving away from us.
