Astro 101 Final Exam Questions with Correct Answers
Question 1:
You are on a camping trip, far away from city lights. You look up into the dark night sky, and see
lots of stars, some brighter, some dimmer. All the stars you see with your unaided eye are
Answer:
In the Milky Way Galaxy
Question 2:
Of these, which is the largest?
-Earth
-The Solar System
-Jupiter
-The Milky Way Galaxy
-The Universe
Answer:
The Universe
Question 3:
When the authors of our textbook say that astronomers are like police detectives trying to
solve crimes, they are explaining that:
Answer:
Both astronomers and detectives must test their hypotheses against any evidence that they
gather
Question 4:
By the term universe, astronomers mean
Answer:
Everything that we can observe
Question 5:
A large body in space that consistently makes its own light (instead of merely reflecting another
body's light) is called
Answer:
A star
,Question 6:
The laws of nature (as determined by scientists)
Answer:
are constructed from many observations, hypotheses, and experimentsare constructed from
many observations, hypotheses, and experiments
are constructed from many observations, hypotheses, and experiments
are constructed from many observations, hypotheses, and experiments
Question 7:
The natural object (not one that humans built) in space that's closest to Earth is
Answer:
The Moon
Question 8:
The smallest piece of an element (like gold or lead) that still has all the properties of that
element is called
Answer:
An atom
Question 9:
Light travels 3 x 10^5 meters every second. That number in words is
Answer:
300,000 meters
Question 10:
The slow tipping of the Earth's axis in a circle with a period of about 26,000 years is called:
Answer:
Precession
Question 11:
Someone who observes the sky every clear night in Boston for many years will NEVER get to
see:
Answer:
The south circumpolar zone
, Question 12:
The 88 sectors into which astronomers today divide the celestial sphere (the whole sky) are
called:
Answer:
Constellations
Question 13:
The point in the sky directly above your head at any given time is called the
Answer:
Zenith
Question 14:
When it comes to our place in the solar system today, which model do we accept?
Answer:
Heliocentric
Question 15:
Based on the scientific and statistical tests of astrological predictions, which of the following
statements is the most reasonable?
Answer:
Astrology has not passed any clear scientific or statistical test and, as a result, most scientists
are very doubtful that it can predict anything meaningful about our lives
Question 16:
Which of the following was NOT done by Hipparchus, the great ancient astronomer?
-compiled a pioneering catalog of the positions of hundreds of stars
-created the system of star magnitudes that we still use today
-discovered that the Earth has a motion called precession
-explained retrograde motion
-you can't fool me; Hipparchus did all of the above
Answer:
Explained retrograde motion
Question 1:
You are on a camping trip, far away from city lights. You look up into the dark night sky, and see
lots of stars, some brighter, some dimmer. All the stars you see with your unaided eye are
Answer:
In the Milky Way Galaxy
Question 2:
Of these, which is the largest?
-Earth
-The Solar System
-Jupiter
-The Milky Way Galaxy
-The Universe
Answer:
The Universe
Question 3:
When the authors of our textbook say that astronomers are like police detectives trying to
solve crimes, they are explaining that:
Answer:
Both astronomers and detectives must test their hypotheses against any evidence that they
gather
Question 4:
By the term universe, astronomers mean
Answer:
Everything that we can observe
Question 5:
A large body in space that consistently makes its own light (instead of merely reflecting another
body's light) is called
Answer:
A star
,Question 6:
The laws of nature (as determined by scientists)
Answer:
are constructed from many observations, hypotheses, and experimentsare constructed from
many observations, hypotheses, and experiments
are constructed from many observations, hypotheses, and experiments
are constructed from many observations, hypotheses, and experiments
Question 7:
The natural object (not one that humans built) in space that's closest to Earth is
Answer:
The Moon
Question 8:
The smallest piece of an element (like gold or lead) that still has all the properties of that
element is called
Answer:
An atom
Question 9:
Light travels 3 x 10^5 meters every second. That number in words is
Answer:
300,000 meters
Question 10:
The slow tipping of the Earth's axis in a circle with a period of about 26,000 years is called:
Answer:
Precession
Question 11:
Someone who observes the sky every clear night in Boston for many years will NEVER get to
see:
Answer:
The south circumpolar zone
, Question 12:
The 88 sectors into which astronomers today divide the celestial sphere (the whole sky) are
called:
Answer:
Constellations
Question 13:
The point in the sky directly above your head at any given time is called the
Answer:
Zenith
Question 14:
When it comes to our place in the solar system today, which model do we accept?
Answer:
Heliocentric
Question 15:
Based on the scientific and statistical tests of astrological predictions, which of the following
statements is the most reasonable?
Answer:
Astrology has not passed any clear scientific or statistical test and, as a result, most scientists
are very doubtful that it can predict anything meaningful about our lives
Question 16:
Which of the following was NOT done by Hipparchus, the great ancient astronomer?
-compiled a pioneering catalog of the positions of hundreds of stars
-created the system of star magnitudes that we still use today
-discovered that the Earth has a motion called precession
-explained retrograde motion
-you can't fool me; Hipparchus did all of the above
Answer:
Explained retrograde motion
