ASTRONOMY 1010 CLEMSON MAIN EXAM TEST 2025/2026
QUESTIONS WITH ANSWERS GRADED A+
✔✔Why are Ganymede and Callisto geologically dead while the other two Galilean
moons of Jupiter are active? - ✔✔they are farther from Jupiter
✔✔Gravitational interactions with moons produce - ✔✔fine structure w/in rings
✔✔Saturn's bright rings are located within the Roche limit of Saturn. This supports the
theory that these rings - ✔✔are formed of moons torn apart by tidal stresses.
✔✔Asteroids are ....? - ✔✔small rock and metal objects orbiting the Sun.
✔✔Remnants of volcanic activity on the asteroid Vesta indicate that members of the
asteroid belt - ✔✔occasionally grow large enough to become differentiated and
geologically active.
✔✔Aside from their periods, short- and long-period comets differ because short-period
comets - ✔✔mostly orbit prograde, while long-period comets have either prograde or
retrograde orbits.
✔✔Rank the parts of a comet from smallest to largest - ✔✔Nucleus, Coma, Tail
✔✔Kuiper Belt objects (KBOs) are actually comet nuclei. Why do they not display
comas and tails? - ✔✔they are too far from the sun
✔✔As a comet leaves the inner Solar System, its ion tail points - ✔✔Away from the sun
✔✔When a piece of space rubble comes and hits Earth, there are 3 different stages for
it, list those in order from first to last - ✔✔Meteoroid , Meteor , Meteorite
✔✔periphelion - ✔✔The point at which the earth is closest to the sun
✔✔Aphelion - ✔✔point in a planet's orbit that is farthest from the sun
✔✔What is the small object to the right of the asteroid Ida? - ✔✔Dactyl, its moon
✔✔Astronomers cannot use parallax to find the distance to most stars. This is because
the stars are - ✔✔too far away
✔✔What is a parallax - ✔✔-an observer moves between two points of observation
- notes nearby objects appear to move relative to distant (background) ones.
, - this apparent shift of a nearby object can be measured by the angle θ called the
parallax
✔✔Hydrostatic equilibrium in the Sun means that - ✔✔pressure balances the weight of
overlying layers
✔✔When hydrogen is fused into helium, energy is released from - ✔✔conversion of
mass to energy
✔✔The International Space Station flies overhead. Using a telescope, you take a
picture and measure its length to be _______
than its length as it would be measured if it were sitting on the ground. - ✔✔slightly less
✔✔Suppose that your friend flies past you in a spaceship, and both of you measure the
time it takes the spaceship to pass your location. Which of the following statements is
true for this scenario? - ✔✔The time you measure is longer than the time your friend
measures.
✔✔The Urey-Miller experiment produced ______ in a laboratory jar. - ✔✔amino acids
✔✔Carbon is a favorable base for life because - ✔✔it can bond to many other atoms in
long chains
✔✔Scientists look for water to indicate places where life might exist because - ✔✔life
depends on it here on Earth
✔✔Astronomers think that intelligent life is more likely to be found around stars of types
F, G, K, and M because these stars - ✔✔live long enough for life to begin and evolve.
✔✔The Drake equation enables astronomers to - ✔✔organize their thoughts about
probabilities.
✔✔The difference between prokaryotes and eukaryotes is that prokaryotes - ✔✔have
no nucleus.
✔✔As wavelength increases, the energy of a photon ______ and it's frequency ______
- ✔✔increases ; decreased
✔✔when an electron moves from a higher energy level in an atom to a lower energy
level.....? - ✔✔a photon is emitted
✔✔if you observe an isolated cloud of gas, you will see.... - ✔✔an emission spectrum
QUESTIONS WITH ANSWERS GRADED A+
✔✔Why are Ganymede and Callisto geologically dead while the other two Galilean
moons of Jupiter are active? - ✔✔they are farther from Jupiter
✔✔Gravitational interactions with moons produce - ✔✔fine structure w/in rings
✔✔Saturn's bright rings are located within the Roche limit of Saturn. This supports the
theory that these rings - ✔✔are formed of moons torn apart by tidal stresses.
✔✔Asteroids are ....? - ✔✔small rock and metal objects orbiting the Sun.
✔✔Remnants of volcanic activity on the asteroid Vesta indicate that members of the
asteroid belt - ✔✔occasionally grow large enough to become differentiated and
geologically active.
✔✔Aside from their periods, short- and long-period comets differ because short-period
comets - ✔✔mostly orbit prograde, while long-period comets have either prograde or
retrograde orbits.
✔✔Rank the parts of a comet from smallest to largest - ✔✔Nucleus, Coma, Tail
✔✔Kuiper Belt objects (KBOs) are actually comet nuclei. Why do they not display
comas and tails? - ✔✔they are too far from the sun
✔✔As a comet leaves the inner Solar System, its ion tail points - ✔✔Away from the sun
✔✔When a piece of space rubble comes and hits Earth, there are 3 different stages for
it, list those in order from first to last - ✔✔Meteoroid , Meteor , Meteorite
✔✔periphelion - ✔✔The point at which the earth is closest to the sun
✔✔Aphelion - ✔✔point in a planet's orbit that is farthest from the sun
✔✔What is the small object to the right of the asteroid Ida? - ✔✔Dactyl, its moon
✔✔Astronomers cannot use parallax to find the distance to most stars. This is because
the stars are - ✔✔too far away
✔✔What is a parallax - ✔✔-an observer moves between two points of observation
- notes nearby objects appear to move relative to distant (background) ones.
, - this apparent shift of a nearby object can be measured by the angle θ called the
parallax
✔✔Hydrostatic equilibrium in the Sun means that - ✔✔pressure balances the weight of
overlying layers
✔✔When hydrogen is fused into helium, energy is released from - ✔✔conversion of
mass to energy
✔✔The International Space Station flies overhead. Using a telescope, you take a
picture and measure its length to be _______
than its length as it would be measured if it were sitting on the ground. - ✔✔slightly less
✔✔Suppose that your friend flies past you in a spaceship, and both of you measure the
time it takes the spaceship to pass your location. Which of the following statements is
true for this scenario? - ✔✔The time you measure is longer than the time your friend
measures.
✔✔The Urey-Miller experiment produced ______ in a laboratory jar. - ✔✔amino acids
✔✔Carbon is a favorable base for life because - ✔✔it can bond to many other atoms in
long chains
✔✔Scientists look for water to indicate places where life might exist because - ✔✔life
depends on it here on Earth
✔✔Astronomers think that intelligent life is more likely to be found around stars of types
F, G, K, and M because these stars - ✔✔live long enough for life to begin and evolve.
✔✔The Drake equation enables astronomers to - ✔✔organize their thoughts about
probabilities.
✔✔The difference between prokaryotes and eukaryotes is that prokaryotes - ✔✔have
no nucleus.
✔✔As wavelength increases, the energy of a photon ______ and it's frequency ______
- ✔✔increases ; decreased
✔✔when an electron moves from a higher energy level in an atom to a lower energy
level.....? - ✔✔a photon is emitted
✔✔if you observe an isolated cloud of gas, you will see.... - ✔✔an emission spectrum
