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Astro 7N — Sample Questions for Test 1

1.        What two properties of a planet affect the gravity we feel on its surface?

A:        radius and distance from the Sun

B:        radius and temperature

C:        mass and distance from the Sun

➔ D:        mass and radius

E:         mass and temperature

2.        Two planets have the same radius.   If Planet A is 5 times more massive than Planet B, how does gravity differ on the surfaces of the two planets?

A:        gravity is 5 times stronger on Planet B

➔ B: gravity is 5 times stronger on Planet A

C:        gravity is 25 times stronger on Planet A

D:       gravity is 25 times stronger on Planet B

E:        gravity is equal on Planet A and Planet B

3.        Say that there were a planet X in our Solar System with a mass 1/4 the mass of Earth and a radius 1/2 the radius of Earth.  How will the gravity on its surface compare to  the surface gravity of Earth?

A:        surface gravity on planet X is 2 times weaker than on Earth

B:        surface gravity on planet X is 2 times stronger than on Earth

➔ C:        surface gravity on planet X is the same as on Earth

D:       surface gravity on planet X is 8 times stronger than on Earth

E:        surface gravity on planet X is 4 times weaker than on Earth

4.        A planet in a nearly circular orbit with its rotation axis tilted by 5 degrees relative to its orbital plane around its star would ...

A:        have longer days and nights than those of Earth

B:        have very severe seasons compared to Earth

C:        have shorter years than those of Earth

D:       have shorter days and nights than those of Earth

➔ E:         have seasons that are not very different from each other as compared to Earth's.

5.        The rotation axis of the Earth is ...

A:       tilted so that it is always pointed directly at the Sun

B:        is sometimes parallel and sometimes perpendicular to the axis of the Earth's orbit around the Sun.

➔ C:        tilted at about 23 degrees relative to the axis of the Earth's orbit around the Sun.

D:       perpendicular to the axis of the Earth's orbit around the Sun.

E:        parallel to the axis of the Earth's orbit around the Sun.

6.        In the diagram above, what season and planet is being represented by thered X on the planet on the left in orbit around the Sun?

A:       winter on Earth

B:       summer on Earth

C:       winter on Venus

D:       winter on Uranus

➔ E:         summer on Uranus

9.        At what time will the Moon set on the day of a Solar eclipse?

A:        Sunrise.

B:       Noon.

➔ C: Sunset.

D:       Midnight.

E:        It will not set at all.  It will be up for 24 hours.

10.      Stars that are in the same constellation ...

A:       appear in all different directions around the sky.

B:        are all at close to the same distance from us.

➔ C:        are likely to beat very different distances from us.

D:       are all in our Solar System.

E:        are all in orbit around the same larger star.

11.      The "North Star" is a star in the constellation of Ursa Minor, which lies just above the North pole of Earth.  Which of the following is true?

A:        Ursa Minor is a Zodiac constellation in the winter but not in the summer.

B:        Ursa Minor is a Zodiac constellation in the summer but not in the winter.

➔ C:        Ursa Minor is not a Zodiac constellation.

D:       The Zodiac constellations are located near the axis below the South pole.

E:        Ursa Minor is a Zodiac constellation all year.

12.     A particular Zodiac constellation is high in the sky at midnight in April.  Where will it be in October?

A:        high in the sky at midnight

➔ B: near the Sun in the daytime sky

C:        near the horizon a couple of hours after sunset

D:       near the horizon a couple of hours before sunrise

E:        visible at midnight, but only from the Southern hemisphere

13.      What do you expect the spectrum of an object that is 1,000,000 Kelvin to be like?

A:        It should peak at radio wavelengths.

B:        It should peak at violet wavelengths.

➔ C:        It should peak at X-ray wavelengths.

D:       It should give off less total light than the Sun.

E:        It should give off about 10 times more total light than the Sun.

18.      In the diagram above, what is happening in the box in the center?

A:        helium gas is emitting photons at specific wavelengths

B:        a continuous spectrum is being produced

C:        electrons are being absorbed by hydrogen gas

➔ D:        hydrogen gas is absorbing photons at specific wavelengths

E:        photons are being emitted at specific wavelengths

19.      A star is a hot, dense gas surrounded by a cooler, low density atmosphere. What type of spectrum will a star create?

A:       blackbody spectrum

➔ B: absorption spectrum

C:       continuous spectrum

D:       hydrogen spectrum

E:        emission spectrum

20.      What makes a transition from a lower energy state to a higher energy state when a photon is absorbed into an atom?

A: proton

B: photon

C: neutron

➔   D: electron

E: graviton

21.      An emission line is produced when:

A:        a proton passes from a higher to a lower energy level.

B:        a proton passes from a lower to a higher energy level.

C:        an electron passes from a lower to a higher energy level.

➔ D:       an electron passes from a higher to a lower energy level.

E:         radiation passes through the outer layers of a star.

22.      Bright lines in an emission spectrum represent:

➔ A:        particular energies of light that are emitted from a distant object

B:        photons absorbed when an electron jumps from a higher to a lower energy

C:        flaws in the telescopes and spectroscopes that astronomers use to measure spectra

D:       regions from which light travels more rapidly and reaches us more quickly

E:        photons absorbed when an electron jumps from a lower to a higher energy level

23.      The faintness of an object that a telescope can observe is mostly determined by the ...

A:       wavelength of light being observed

B:       eyepiece it uses

C:       the expertise of the astronomer in focusing light

➔ D: diameter of the opening of the telescope

E:        magnification of the telescope

24.      In what ways does a 5 meter telescope outperform a 1 meter telescope?

A:       All objects observed by the 5 meter will appear larger.

➔ B: Its images are 25 times brighter than a 1 meter.

C:        It will produce better "seeing" than the 1 meter.

D:       It can observe light with a wavelength 5 times longer than the 1 meter.

E:        It will not suffer from spherical aberration like the 1 meter.

25.      A mountaintop is a good location for optical telescopes because the site ...

A:        has cold weather which improves the performance of the instruments

B:        is closer to astronomical objects

C:        has warm weather which improves the performance of the instruments

➔ D:        is above much of the atmosphere

E:        has high altitude which expands the glass in the mirror and makes it smoother

26.      Which statement about the rotation of the Inner planets is true?

➔ A:        Venus rotates in the opposite direction from the three others.

B:        All rotate in the same direction.

C:       The rotation periods of all of them are the same — i.e., 1 Earth day.

D:       All have rotation periods of 365 Earth days.

E:        All have rotation periods about equal to their periods to orbit the Sun.

27.      Which of the following is TRUE?

A:        The average surface temperature of Venus is about 30 degrees Fahrenheit.

B:        Mercury has a very thick atmosphere made mostly of carbon dioxide.

C:        The runaway greenhouse effect causes the present temperatures on Mars to exceed those on Earth.

➔ D:       Mercury rotates exactly one and a halftimes for every one revolution around the Sun.

E:        Venus has no volcanoes on its surface.

28.      Why do the orbits of the planets all lie in nearly the same plane?

A:       Collisions between planetesimals destroyed all planets that would have been elsewhere.

B:        The Sun’s gravity forced them into these orbits.

➔ C:        The early solar nebula flattened into a disk.

D:       The angular momentum of the solar system was kept to a minimum this way.

E:        This happened purely by chance.

29.      Of these choices, which planet has the most moons?

A:	Earth
B:	Mercury
➔ C:	Saturn
D:	Mars
E:	Venus

30.      Venus is visible to us ...

➔ A: only near sunrise or sunset.

B:        only during the several hours around midnight.

C:       only in the winter.

D:       only in the summer.

E:        only during its new phase.

34.      Which planet has a temperature of 800 degrees Fahrenheit on the side facing the Sun and –290 degrees Fahrenheit on the side opposite the Sun?

A:	Mars
B:	Venus
C:	Earth
D:	Jupiter
➔ E:	Mercury

35.      How many Earth years does it take Uranus to orbit the Sun?

➔ A: 84

B:       1

C:       0.48

D:       2.4

E:         0.27

36.     Meteors are ...

➔ A:        asteroids or comet debris that pass into Earth’s atmosphere and burn up

B:        a group of rocky objects between the orbits of Jupiter and Saturn

C:        comets that are vaporized when they pass very close to the Sun

D:       comets that escape the Solar System without being vaporized by the Sun

E:        a group of rocky objects between the orbits of Mars and Jupiter

37.      Which feature of Neptune is most responsible for its blue color?

➔ A:        methane in its atmosphere

B:        auroral activity due to its strong magnetic field

C:       excess energy emitted by the interior

D:       winds blowing at speeds almost that of sound

E:         large oceans covering most of the surface

38.      Which of the following statements is TRUE?

A:        Neither Uranus or Neptune have ring systems.

➔ B:        The planet Saturn has more than 30 moons.

C:        There is no evidence to suggest that either Jupiter or Saturn has a liquid metallic or rocky core beneath its gas layers.

D:       The Great Red Spot is a dust storm near the South polar cap of Mars.

E:        Jupiter’s solid surface lies just below the cloud layers visible from Earth.

39.      The surface of Venus is hotter than the surface of Mercury because ...

A:       Venus is closer to the Sun than Mercury.

B:        Mercury’s atmosphere prevents radiation from penetrating through to its surface.

C:       of the volcanic activity that occurs on Venus.

➔ D:        Venus is more massive and is able to retain a thick atmosphere.

E:        Venus is smaller than Mercury so it does not require so much energy to heat it.

40.      Which of the following is moving fastest in the orbit?

➔ A:        Venus at its perihelion (closest point to Sun)

B:        Venus at its aphelion (farthest point from Sun)

C:        Mars at its perihelion (closest point to Sun)

D:       Mars at its aphelion (farthest point from Sun)

E:        Neptune at its aphelion (farthest point from Sun)

41.      Which of the following is FALSE?

A:       Venus has a density of 5.2 grams per cubic centimeter

B:        All Terrestrial planets have densities much higher than the density of water

➔ C:        Saturn has a density of 4.8 grams per cubic centimeter, similar to metals like aluminum and iron

D:       The density of Jupiter is 1.3 grams per cubic centimeter, similar to the density of milk.

E:        The density of Mercury is greater than the density of Uranus.

42.      Which of the following objects have a dark/black sky, even in the daytime?

A:        both Venus and Mars

B:        both Mercury and Mars

C:        both the Moon and Earth

➔ D: both the Moon and Mercury

E:         both Earth and Titan

43.      Which of the following is the largest distance?

➔ A:        the distance from Jupiter to Saturn

B:        the distance from the Sun to the Earth

C:       the distance from the Earth to the Moon

D:       the distance from Earth to Mars

E:        the distance from Mercury to Venus

46.      Which of the following planets looks the most like the&