Abeka Grade 8 Science Test 10

Front 1

Mars's two moons are Deimos and __?__.

Back 1

Phobos

Front 2

What is the largest moon in the solar system?

Back 2

Ganymede

Front 3

A Hertzsprung-Russell diagram is a two-dimensional graph that compares stars by their temperature and __?__.

Back 3

brightness

Front 4

The Summer Triangle is formed of the stars Deneb, Vega, and __?__.

Back 4

Altair

Front 5

During what phase of the moon is the entire sunlit side visible?

Back 5

full moon

Front 6

The orbits of the planets are symmetrical ovals called __?__.

Back 6

ellipses

Front 7

Frozen chunk of ice and dust that orbit the sun are called __?__.

Back 7

comets

Front 8

The explosion of a star is called a __?__.

Back 8

supernova

Front 9

The convection cells that cover the sun's visible surface are called __?__.

Back 9

granules

Front 10

What are the flamelike columns of gas that continually erupt from the lowest layer of the sun's atmosphere?

Back 10

spicules

Front 11

What is the visible portion of the sun?

Back 11

photosphere

Front 12

What galaxy shape is the Milky Way?

Back 12

barred spiral

Front 13

What unit of measurement is approximately equal to the distance between the sun and the earth?

Back 13

astronomical unit

Front 14

Label each constellation.

Back 14

Cassiopeia

Front 15

Taurus

Back 15

Ursa Major

Front 16

Orion

Back 16

and Cygnus

Front 17

describes Venus's backward rotation on its axis

Back 17

retrograde

Front 18

name for the period of time that the moon takes to orbit the earth

Back 18

lunar month

Front 19

imaginary sphere with Earth at the center and the heavenly bodies on its inner surface

Back 19

celestial sphere

Front 20

imaginary "band" in the sky I which the sun, moon, and planets travel

Back 20

zodiac

Front 21

the two planets between which the asteroid belt is located

Back 21

Mars and Jupiter

Front 22

describes a star that is always above the horizon to an observer at a particular location

Back 22

circumpolar

Front 23

What group of small, icy objects orbit the sun outside the orbit of the outermost planet?

Back 23

Kuiper belt

Front 24

The observed brightness that a star would have to an observer located 10 parsecs away is the

__?__ magnitude.

Back 24

absolute

Front 25

What is the cloud of gas and dust that surrounds the center of a comet?

Back 25

coma

Front 26

Who developed the law of universal gravitation?

Back 26

Isaac Newton

Front 27

What is a rapidly rotating star that emits direction beams of radio waves?

Back 27

pulsar

Front 28

What Latin word is used to refer to the lunar "seas"?

Back 28

mare

Front 29

Which scientific law states the relationship between a planet's period and average distance from the sun?

Back 29

third law of planetary motion

Front 30

What is the apparent change in the position of an object caused by an actual change in the position of the observer?

Back 30

parallax

Front 31

What is the largest galaxy in the Local Group?

Back 31

Andromeda galaxy

Front 32

Which category of stars includes the sun?

Back 32

main sequence

Front 33

With which planet do the Trojan asteroids share an orbit?

Back 33

Jupiter

Front 34

What is an object so massive and dense that not even light can escape its gravity?

Back 34

neutron star

Front 35

the largest planet in our solar system

Back 35

Jupiter

Front 36

known for its ring system

Back 36

Saturn

Front 37

the outermost planet in our solar system

Back 37

Neptune

Front 38

the fastest-moving planet

Back 38

Mercury

Front 39

sometimes called the "morning star" and "evening star"

Back 39

Venus

Front 40

gas giant that seems to lie on its side

Back 40

Uranus

Front 41

notable feature is Olympus Mons

Back 41

Mars

Front 42

A planet's closest approach to the sun is __?__.

Back 42

perihelion

Front 43

The idea that the earth is at the center of the universe and that the sun, planets, and stars all revolve around the earth is the __?__ view.

Back 43

geocentric

Front 44

A small rock fro space that is burning up as it passes through Earth's atmosphere is an __?__.

Back 44

meteor

Front 45

A large cloud of gas and dust in space is called a __?__.

Back 45

nebula

Front 46

The phenomenon in which the moon passes between the sun and the earth is a __?__.

Back 46

solar eclipse

Front 47

The study of God's creation beyond the atmosphere is __?__.

Back 47

astronomy

Front 48

A small group of stars that is used to form a picture or represent an object is an __?__.

Back 48

asterism

Front 49

Match each star with the correct constellation.

Vega

Back 49

Lyra

Front 50

Sirius

Back 50

Canis Major

Front 51

Spica

Back 51

Virgo

Front 52

Aldebaran

Back 52

Taurus

Front 53

Castor

Back 53

Gemini

Front 54

Polaris

Back 54

Ursa Minor

Front 55

Betelgeuse

Back 55

Orion

Front 56

Regulus

Back 56

Leo

Front 57

ESSAY: Compare and contrast binary stars, open clusters, and globular clusters.

Back 57

Answers should include the following ideas:

A binary star is a system in which two stars are bound together by gravity; these two stars circle each other in the same way that the moon revolves around the earth.

Open clusters are loose, asymmetrical clumps containing tens of hundreds, and occasionally thousands, of stars.

Globular clusters are tightly clumped spherical groups of thousands or millions of stars that travel outside the boundaries of the Milky way in unusual orbits around the galaxy's center.