Astronomy 101 - Final Exam questions and
Verified Answers
If the moon is setting at 6 A.M., the phase of the Moon must be
A) third quarter
B) waning crescent
C) new
D) first
E) full - ANSWER full
One light-year is the distance light travels in one year. The speed of light is about 300,000
km/s (3x10^5 km/s). How far is 1 light-year?
A) 1.8x10^7 km
B) 9.46x10^12 km
C) 3x10^5 km
D) 1.08x10^9 - ANSWER 9.46x10^12 km
The universe is defined as
A) all material, space, and energy that exist: everything
B) all the objects we can see and the space between
C) all the stars and galaxies that we can see with telescopes
D) the entire milky way galaxy - ANSWER all material, space, and energy that exist: everything
The moon rises in the east and sets in the west
A) earth rotates once each day
B) earth revolves around the sun each year
,C) the direction of earth's axis in space precesses with a period of 26,000 years
D) the universe is expanding - ANSWER earth rotates once each day
Planets show retrograde motion
A) earth rotates once each day
B) earth revolves around the sun each year
C) the direction of earth's axis in space precesses with a period of 26,000 years
D) the universe is expanding - ANSWER earth revolves around the sun each year
In the year A.D. 15,000, Vega will be a better "North Star" than Polaris
A) earth rotates once each day
B) earth revolves around the sun each year
C) the direction of earth's axis in space precesses with a period of 26,000 years
D) the universe is expanding - ANSWER the direction of earth's axis in space precesses with
a period of 26,000 years
The stars of Orion's Belt rise in the east and set in the west
A) earth rotates once each day
B) earth revolves around the sun each year
C) the direction of earth's axis in space precesses with a period of 26,000 years
D) the universe is expanding - ANSWER earth rotates once each day
The Greeks rejected the notion that the Earth orbits the Sun. Why?
A) they were not as smart as we are
B) they could not measure how big the earth was
C) they could not measure a change in stars' positions on the sky
D) they believed that the sun is a God - ANSWER they could not measure a change in
stars' positions on the sky
,The number of official constellations is
A) 88
B) 123
C) 205
D) 56 - ANSWER 88
The stars are present in the local sky during the daytime. We just can't see them.
A) true
B) false - ANSWER true
The great contribution of Tycho Brahe was to
A) offer the first detailed model of a sun-centered solar system, thereby beginning the
process of overturning the earth-centered model of the Greeks
B) observe planetary positions with sufficient accuracy so that Kepler could later use the data
to discover the laws of planetary motion
C) discovered that planets orbit the sun in elliptical orbits with varying speed
D) discover four moons orbiting Jupiter, thereby lending strong support to the idea that the
earth is not the center of the universe - ANSWER observe planetary positions with sufficient
accuracy so that Kepler could later use the data to discover the laws of planetary motion
Which of the following is NOT one of, nor a direct consequence of, Kepler's Laws?
A) more distant planets orbit the sun at slower speeds
B) as a planet moves around its orbit, it sweeps out equal areas in equal times
C) the orbit of each planet about the sun is an ellipse with the sun at one focus
D) the force of attraction between any two objects decreases with the square of the
distance between their centers - ANSWER the force of attraction between any two objects
decreases with the square of the distance between their centers
, If you lived on the Moon, you'd see full Earth when we see new moon.
A) true
B) false - ANSWER true
Scientific thinking is _________
A) a difficult process that only a handful of people can do well
B) completely different from any other type of thinking
C) an ancient mode go thinking first invented in Egypt
D) based on everyday ideas of observation and trial-and-error experiments - ANSWER based on
everyday ideas of observation and trial-and-error experiments
Scientific theories can never be proved true beyond all doubt
A) true
B) false - ANSWER true
You are standing on Earth's equator. Which way is Polaris, the North Star?
A) 30 degrees up, due west
B) on the northern horizon
C) directly overhead
D) the answer depends on whether it's winter or summer
E) the answer depends on what time of day (or night) it is - ANSWER on the northern horizon
Why were ancient peoples unable to detect stellar parallax?
A) they did not observe for long enough periods of time
B) they did detect it, but they rejected the observations
C) they did not look for it
D) they could not see distant stars
Verified Answers
If the moon is setting at 6 A.M., the phase of the Moon must be
A) third quarter
B) waning crescent
C) new
D) first
E) full - ANSWER full
One light-year is the distance light travels in one year. The speed of light is about 300,000
km/s (3x10^5 km/s). How far is 1 light-year?
A) 1.8x10^7 km
B) 9.46x10^12 km
C) 3x10^5 km
D) 1.08x10^9 - ANSWER 9.46x10^12 km
The universe is defined as
A) all material, space, and energy that exist: everything
B) all the objects we can see and the space between
C) all the stars and galaxies that we can see with telescopes
D) the entire milky way galaxy - ANSWER all material, space, and energy that exist: everything
The moon rises in the east and sets in the west
A) earth rotates once each day
B) earth revolves around the sun each year
,C) the direction of earth's axis in space precesses with a period of 26,000 years
D) the universe is expanding - ANSWER earth rotates once each day
Planets show retrograde motion
A) earth rotates once each day
B) earth revolves around the sun each year
C) the direction of earth's axis in space precesses with a period of 26,000 years
D) the universe is expanding - ANSWER earth revolves around the sun each year
In the year A.D. 15,000, Vega will be a better "North Star" than Polaris
A) earth rotates once each day
B) earth revolves around the sun each year
C) the direction of earth's axis in space precesses with a period of 26,000 years
D) the universe is expanding - ANSWER the direction of earth's axis in space precesses with
a period of 26,000 years
The stars of Orion's Belt rise in the east and set in the west
A) earth rotates once each day
B) earth revolves around the sun each year
C) the direction of earth's axis in space precesses with a period of 26,000 years
D) the universe is expanding - ANSWER earth rotates once each day
The Greeks rejected the notion that the Earth orbits the Sun. Why?
A) they were not as smart as we are
B) they could not measure how big the earth was
C) they could not measure a change in stars' positions on the sky
D) they believed that the sun is a God - ANSWER they could not measure a change in
stars' positions on the sky
,The number of official constellations is
A) 88
B) 123
C) 205
D) 56 - ANSWER 88
The stars are present in the local sky during the daytime. We just can't see them.
A) true
B) false - ANSWER true
The great contribution of Tycho Brahe was to
A) offer the first detailed model of a sun-centered solar system, thereby beginning the
process of overturning the earth-centered model of the Greeks
B) observe planetary positions with sufficient accuracy so that Kepler could later use the data
to discover the laws of planetary motion
C) discovered that planets orbit the sun in elliptical orbits with varying speed
D) discover four moons orbiting Jupiter, thereby lending strong support to the idea that the
earth is not the center of the universe - ANSWER observe planetary positions with sufficient
accuracy so that Kepler could later use the data to discover the laws of planetary motion
Which of the following is NOT one of, nor a direct consequence of, Kepler's Laws?
A) more distant planets orbit the sun at slower speeds
B) as a planet moves around its orbit, it sweeps out equal areas in equal times
C) the orbit of each planet about the sun is an ellipse with the sun at one focus
D) the force of attraction between any two objects decreases with the square of the
distance between their centers - ANSWER the force of attraction between any two objects
decreases with the square of the distance between their centers
, If you lived on the Moon, you'd see full Earth when we see new moon.
A) true
B) false - ANSWER true
Scientific thinking is _________
A) a difficult process that only a handful of people can do well
B) completely different from any other type of thinking
C) an ancient mode go thinking first invented in Egypt
D) based on everyday ideas of observation and trial-and-error experiments - ANSWER based on
everyday ideas of observation and trial-and-error experiments
Scientific theories can never be proved true beyond all doubt
A) true
B) false - ANSWER true
You are standing on Earth's equator. Which way is Polaris, the North Star?
A) 30 degrees up, due west
B) on the northern horizon
C) directly overhead
D) the answer depends on whether it's winter or summer
E) the answer depends on what time of day (or night) it is - ANSWER on the northern horizon
Why were ancient peoples unable to detect stellar parallax?
A) they did not observe for long enough periods of time
B) they did detect it, but they rejected the observations
C) they did not look for it
D) they could not see distant stars
