Astro 101 Combo of all quiz questions
with correct answers
Imagine that you have never been on a city bus before. The first time that you take the bus, you
get on, and you watch everyone around you, to figure out how it all works. You notice that there
are little red buttons throughout the bus. Whenever someone presses one of the buttons, a bell
dings, and the bus driver stops the bus at the next stop. This chain of events happens without
fail, each time that you ride the bus. You ride the bus multiple times, on different days, and on
different bus routes, but the same thing happens each time the button is pressed, without fail.
How might you use the scientific method to describe what you have learned/observed? - ANS
Using the scientific method, your observations allow you to use inductive reasoning to
generalize that, whenever the button is pressed, the bus will stop.
A person is stargazing with a device to measure brightness magnitude. They record the
brightness of five objects in the celestial sphere. Which of these objects, listed below, was the
dimmest they could see without the device? - ANS Object D, magnitude 5
Which of the following best describes what distinguishes a zodiac constellation?
Choose the BEST answer. - ANS Zodiac constellations lie along the ecliptic.
In the early morning, you see the moon near the horizon opposite the Sun. The Sun illuminates
most of the moon's surface. What phase is the moon in? - ANS Waning Gibbous
Earth's solar day is 24 hours, and its sidereal day is about 23h 56 minutes. Based on this, about
how much longer would 20 solar days be than 20 sidereal days? - ANS 1 hour and 20
minutes
At which of these times does the intersection of the equatorial plane and the ecliptic's plane
point to the sun? - ANS Equinox
Which of the following best explains a lunar eclipse? - ANS A lunar eclipse is when the
Earth's shadow is cast on the Moon.
To see a solar eclipse, you have to be in Earth's shadow. - ANS False
The Christmas holiday occurs at approximately the same time that Earth is at its furthest
distance from the Sun - ANS False
,When the sun is shining on the Tropic of Capricorn, what is the season in the Southern
hemisphere? - ANS Summer
Which of the following does NOT represent a method to obtain direct knowledge? - ANS
Taking your temperature with a thermometer.
Which of these represents 5,362,000,000 kilometers in scientific notation? - ANS 5.362 x
10^9 km
The zodiac constellations & corresponding dates are: Jan 21 - Capricorn, Feb 21 - Aquarius,
Mar 21 - Pisces, Apr 21 - Aries, May 21 - Taurus, June 21 - Gemini, July 21 - Cancer, Aug 21 -
Leo, Sept 21 - Virgo, Oct 21 - Libra, Nov 21 - Scorpio, Dec 21 - Sagittarius. At midnight, July 21,
which constellations would be prominent in the night sky? - ANS Sagittarius, Capricorn,
Aquarius
If you stare at the sky for a long time at night, the stars appear to move. What is the cause of
this apparent motion? - ANS The Earth's rotation.
Astrologically predicted behavioural patterns have been observed to repeat over thousands of
years. - ANS False
"Based on the theory that fish breathe underwater, I expect that when I remove this fish from the
water it will suffocate and die."
What type of knowledge or reasoning is being used to come to this conclusion? - ANS
Deductive Reasoning
Which of the following is not a constellation? - ANS The Big Dipper
What is the difference between how inductive and deductive reasoning are used in the scientific
method? - ANS Deductive reasoning is used to deduce the expected outcome of
experiments before they are performed and inductive reasoning is used to validate theories in
light of experimental evidence.
If you stand on the equator at midday on the autumnal equinox, what is at your zenith? - ANS
sun
The Local Group is comprised of a collection of galaxies of similar shapes and sizes. - ANS
False
A person takes three candies out of a bag of a certain brand of candies. They proceed to
consume all three of the candies and notice that all the candies tasted sweet. The person then
claims that the rest of the candies in the bag are sweet based on the three candies they had
were sweet.
What reasoning or knowledge was used to make this claim? - ANS Inductive reasoning
,When looking at two stars, one of them clearly looks brighter than the other. What can we
conclude about the two stars based on this?
The options:
- The brighter star is hotter than the dimmer star.
- The brighter star is closer to us than the dimmer star.
- The brighter star shines more light than the dimmer star
- The brighter star is larger than the dimmer star
- none of the others - ANS None of the others.
There aren't any new constellations being named because humans don't generate myths about
the celestial heavens any longer. - ANS False
If the Sun rises in the constellation Gemini in the morning, where does it set at night? - ANS
Gemini
Over the course of a night, the Moon and stars move across the sky, from horizon to horizon.
What is the cause of this motion? - ANS The rotation of the Earth about its axis.
Which of these stars should have the smallest parallax?
Betelgeuse (distance: 700 ly)
Alpha Centauri (distance: 4 ly)
Sirius A (distance: 7 ly)
Polaris (distance: 433 ly)
The Sun (distance: 0 ly) - ANS Betelgeuse (distance: 700 ly)
If the Earth rotated twice as fast as it currently does, but its orbital period was the same, which
of the following would occur?
- The night would be half as long
- The solar year would be twice as long
- The solar day would be shorter than the sidereal day
- The sidereal day would be twice as long - ANS The night would be half as long
Living in on the island, you look at the Moon and see it is in the Waxing Crescent phase. In what
phase do you expect your friend in Australia to see the Moon during their night time?
a. Waxing Crescent
b. Waxing Crescent
c. Waxing Gibbous
d. Waning Gibbous
, e. They will not see the Moon because the Moon is on the other side of the Earth. - ANS
Waxing Crescent
If an inferior planet were in opposition with Earth, where would you look for it with a telescope?
a. The question doesn't present a possible scenario.
b. It would be on the opposite side of the Sun from Earth, so it would be impossible to see.
c. It would be on the opposite side of the Earth from the Sun, so look near the ecliptic at your
zenith at midnight
d. It would be on the opposite side of the Earth as the Moon, so wait until the Moon is at your
nadir and look towards your zenith.
e. It would be in the space between the Earth and the Sun, so you would need to use a solar
filter to see the planet's shadow. - ANS The question doesn't present a possible scenario.
Where would you expect an inferior planet to be located, relative to the Earth and Sun, if it were
in opposition?
a. None of the others.
b. Between the Earth and the Sun.
c. On the opposite side of the Earth to the Sun.
d. On the opposite side of the Sun than the Earth.
e. Either between the Sun and the Earth or on the opposite side of the Sun to the Earth. - ANS
None of the others.
What is the easiest way to determine which is the closest star (other than the Sun) to Earth? -
ANS Measure each star's angular location in the celestial sphere twice, six months apart. The
star with the largest angular difference is the closest.
Why are you less likely to see a solar eclipse than a lunar eclipse? - ANS The lunar umbra
only covers a small portion of the Earth.
The scale of apparent visual magnitudes extends into negative numbers to represent the
faintest objects in the sky. - ANS False
Which of these best describes the New Moon phase? - ANS The lunar phase in which
sunlight illuminates only the far side of the Moon
Canis Minor is a small constellation included in the Orion family of constellations. Canis Minor is
made up of many stars, three of which are named Alpha Canis Minoris (or Procyon), Beta Canis
with correct answers
Imagine that you have never been on a city bus before. The first time that you take the bus, you
get on, and you watch everyone around you, to figure out how it all works. You notice that there
are little red buttons throughout the bus. Whenever someone presses one of the buttons, a bell
dings, and the bus driver stops the bus at the next stop. This chain of events happens without
fail, each time that you ride the bus. You ride the bus multiple times, on different days, and on
different bus routes, but the same thing happens each time the button is pressed, without fail.
How might you use the scientific method to describe what you have learned/observed? - ANS
Using the scientific method, your observations allow you to use inductive reasoning to
generalize that, whenever the button is pressed, the bus will stop.
A person is stargazing with a device to measure brightness magnitude. They record the
brightness of five objects in the celestial sphere. Which of these objects, listed below, was the
dimmest they could see without the device? - ANS Object D, magnitude 5
Which of the following best describes what distinguishes a zodiac constellation?
Choose the BEST answer. - ANS Zodiac constellations lie along the ecliptic.
In the early morning, you see the moon near the horizon opposite the Sun. The Sun illuminates
most of the moon's surface. What phase is the moon in? - ANS Waning Gibbous
Earth's solar day is 24 hours, and its sidereal day is about 23h 56 minutes. Based on this, about
how much longer would 20 solar days be than 20 sidereal days? - ANS 1 hour and 20
minutes
At which of these times does the intersection of the equatorial plane and the ecliptic's plane
point to the sun? - ANS Equinox
Which of the following best explains a lunar eclipse? - ANS A lunar eclipse is when the
Earth's shadow is cast on the Moon.
To see a solar eclipse, you have to be in Earth's shadow. - ANS False
The Christmas holiday occurs at approximately the same time that Earth is at its furthest
distance from the Sun - ANS False
,When the sun is shining on the Tropic of Capricorn, what is the season in the Southern
hemisphere? - ANS Summer
Which of the following does NOT represent a method to obtain direct knowledge? - ANS
Taking your temperature with a thermometer.
Which of these represents 5,362,000,000 kilometers in scientific notation? - ANS 5.362 x
10^9 km
The zodiac constellations & corresponding dates are: Jan 21 - Capricorn, Feb 21 - Aquarius,
Mar 21 - Pisces, Apr 21 - Aries, May 21 - Taurus, June 21 - Gemini, July 21 - Cancer, Aug 21 -
Leo, Sept 21 - Virgo, Oct 21 - Libra, Nov 21 - Scorpio, Dec 21 - Sagittarius. At midnight, July 21,
which constellations would be prominent in the night sky? - ANS Sagittarius, Capricorn,
Aquarius
If you stare at the sky for a long time at night, the stars appear to move. What is the cause of
this apparent motion? - ANS The Earth's rotation.
Astrologically predicted behavioural patterns have been observed to repeat over thousands of
years. - ANS False
"Based on the theory that fish breathe underwater, I expect that when I remove this fish from the
water it will suffocate and die."
What type of knowledge or reasoning is being used to come to this conclusion? - ANS
Deductive Reasoning
Which of the following is not a constellation? - ANS The Big Dipper
What is the difference between how inductive and deductive reasoning are used in the scientific
method? - ANS Deductive reasoning is used to deduce the expected outcome of
experiments before they are performed and inductive reasoning is used to validate theories in
light of experimental evidence.
If you stand on the equator at midday on the autumnal equinox, what is at your zenith? - ANS
sun
The Local Group is comprised of a collection of galaxies of similar shapes and sizes. - ANS
False
A person takes three candies out of a bag of a certain brand of candies. They proceed to
consume all three of the candies and notice that all the candies tasted sweet. The person then
claims that the rest of the candies in the bag are sweet based on the three candies they had
were sweet.
What reasoning or knowledge was used to make this claim? - ANS Inductive reasoning
,When looking at two stars, one of them clearly looks brighter than the other. What can we
conclude about the two stars based on this?
The options:
- The brighter star is hotter than the dimmer star.
- The brighter star is closer to us than the dimmer star.
- The brighter star shines more light than the dimmer star
- The brighter star is larger than the dimmer star
- none of the others - ANS None of the others.
There aren't any new constellations being named because humans don't generate myths about
the celestial heavens any longer. - ANS False
If the Sun rises in the constellation Gemini in the morning, where does it set at night? - ANS
Gemini
Over the course of a night, the Moon and stars move across the sky, from horizon to horizon.
What is the cause of this motion? - ANS The rotation of the Earth about its axis.
Which of these stars should have the smallest parallax?
Betelgeuse (distance: 700 ly)
Alpha Centauri (distance: 4 ly)
Sirius A (distance: 7 ly)
Polaris (distance: 433 ly)
The Sun (distance: 0 ly) - ANS Betelgeuse (distance: 700 ly)
If the Earth rotated twice as fast as it currently does, but its orbital period was the same, which
of the following would occur?
- The night would be half as long
- The solar year would be twice as long
- The solar day would be shorter than the sidereal day
- The sidereal day would be twice as long - ANS The night would be half as long
Living in on the island, you look at the Moon and see it is in the Waxing Crescent phase. In what
phase do you expect your friend in Australia to see the Moon during their night time?
a. Waxing Crescent
b. Waxing Crescent
c. Waxing Gibbous
d. Waning Gibbous
, e. They will not see the Moon because the Moon is on the other side of the Earth. - ANS
Waxing Crescent
If an inferior planet were in opposition with Earth, where would you look for it with a telescope?
a. The question doesn't present a possible scenario.
b. It would be on the opposite side of the Sun from Earth, so it would be impossible to see.
c. It would be on the opposite side of the Earth from the Sun, so look near the ecliptic at your
zenith at midnight
d. It would be on the opposite side of the Earth as the Moon, so wait until the Moon is at your
nadir and look towards your zenith.
e. It would be in the space between the Earth and the Sun, so you would need to use a solar
filter to see the planet's shadow. - ANS The question doesn't present a possible scenario.
Where would you expect an inferior planet to be located, relative to the Earth and Sun, if it were
in opposition?
a. None of the others.
b. Between the Earth and the Sun.
c. On the opposite side of the Earth to the Sun.
d. On the opposite side of the Sun than the Earth.
e. Either between the Sun and the Earth or on the opposite side of the Sun to the Earth. - ANS
None of the others.
What is the easiest way to determine which is the closest star (other than the Sun) to Earth? -
ANS Measure each star's angular location in the celestial sphere twice, six months apart. The
star with the largest angular difference is the closest.
Why are you less likely to see a solar eclipse than a lunar eclipse? - ANS The lunar umbra
only covers a small portion of the Earth.
The scale of apparent visual magnitudes extends into negative numbers to represent the
faintest objects in the sky. - ANS False
Which of these best describes the New Moon phase? - ANS The lunar phase in which
sunlight illuminates only the far side of the Moon
Canis Minor is a small constellation included in the Orion family of constellations. Canis Minor is
made up of many stars, three of which are named Alpha Canis Minoris (or Procyon), Beta Canis
