Astronomy Quiz

Front 1

How old is the Universe?

Back 1

Around 14 Billion years old

Front 2

Scientific Method 3 Parts

Back 2

1. Theory

2. Prediction

3. Experiment

Front 3

True or False, the science can START OR END at any point of the scientific method?

Back 3

True

Front 4

True or false, science proves things?

Back 4

False

Front 5

Science proves theories, true/false

Back 5

false, science disproves theories

it rejects bad ideas and theories

science is concerned with what is useful

Front 6

Modern Scientific Theories 4 parts

Back 6

1. Requirement: Testable/Falsifaible

2. Requirement: Repeatable/Repeated

3. Refinement: Simple

4. Aesthetics: Elegant

Front 7

What is testable/falsifiable?

Back 7

the inherent possibility thta it can be proved false.

Theory must make predictions about phenomena such that failure to confrim predictions results in rejection of theory

Front 8

What is repeatable?

Back 8

Anyone an repeat and prove to themsleves that the results of the experiment are intially found

Front 9

What is a simple theory?

Back 9

Two competing theories; the simpler one is preferred

Both explain the same phenomena

Generally interpreted to mean: a theory should not include unecessary/extra/superflous details

Front 10

What is elegant theory?

Back 10

Theory can be stated concisely, but consequences are broad

Ties together multiple phenomena in a way that is simpler than their independent theories

Front 11

Were Ancient Astronomers were scientists?

Back 11

Yes, they observed the night sky, theorized patterns and made predictions...many ancient theories now disproved but does'nt mean that it wasn't science of the time

Front 12

What is a constellation?

Back 12

Patterns observable in the proximity of bright stars to each other

Front 13

Zodiac constellations

Back 13

Line from Earth to sun points to zodiac constellation

Therefore the sun blocks the astrological constellation

Front 14

What is Asterism?

Back 14

Big Dipper, Great Bear etc.

A collection/pattern of start that is not a constellation

Front 15

Usefulness of ancient astronomy (3)

Back 15

1. Travel: North Star/Polaris stays in the same position

2. Agriculture: Constellation position indicated seasons

3. Behaviour: Constellation overhead during day of birth indicates aspects of a person's future

Front 16

Celestial Sphere

Back 16

The seeminlgy static angular relations between stars that cylce across the sky during a year

or put another way...

An imaginary sphere of gigantic radius with the earth located at its center. The poles of celestial sphere are aligned with the poles of the Earth. The celestrial equator lies along the celestial sphere in the same plane that includes the Earth's equator.

Front 17

Celestial Poles

Back 17

The distant point in the night sky that ll stars rotate about - example Polaris the North Star

Front 18

Precession

Back 18

Like a spinning top, the axis of rotation oscillates...so polaris is the north start but Thuban was the North Star in 3000 BC

Front 19

CCelestial Equator

Back 19

The imaginary line that is equidistant from each of the celestial p[oles...coincides with the Earths equator

Front 20

Declination and Right Ascension

Back 20

We can locate any object on the celestial sphere by giving two coordinates, called the Right Ascension and Declination. Celestial coordinates. Stars and galaxies have almost fixed positions in right ascension and declination...planets and sun on other hand move around

Reference point is the vernal equinox

Front 21

Ecliptic

Back 21

Because of the Earth's yearly orbital motion, the sun appears to circle the ecliptic....

Ecliptic is the path that the sun appears to trace among the stars in a year because of the Earths revolution around it.

Front 22

Solstice

Back 22

When the sun is at the furthest point from the equator

Winter solstice in December and summer solstice in June

Front 23

Equinox

Back 23

When the sun is directly overhead of equator

Vernal Equinox in March

Autumnal Equinox in September

Front 24

What causes the seasons?

Back 24

The earth's tilt! the earth is closest to the sun during North Hemisphere winter!

Front 25

Solar Day

Back 25

Time taken for the sun to be in the same position overhead

24 hours ...1 hour = 60 mins...1 min = 60 seconds

Front 26

Sidereal Day

Back 26

Time taken for the stars to be in the same position overhead

23 hours 56 minutes

Front 27

Triangulation

Back 27

The over-arching principle of using triangles to measure determine distances

Measure 1 (or two angles) and 1 distance

Planet distance determined from two observations

Star distance determiend from orbit around sun

Reverse process to measure diameter size of planet!

Front 28

Eratosthenes Measurement

Back 28

Measured parallax between 2 cities 780km apart

Used deep well to measure angle, found 7.2 degrees

Calculated radius of 6366km...actual was 6378km

Front 29

Measuring things withon our solar system

Back 29

Use two distant observations ot measure angles

Front 30

Measuring things outside our solar system

Back 30

Mearure angles now and 6 months from now

Front 31

AU

Back 31

Astronomical Unit

The average distance between Earth and Sun

1 parasec = 206 265 AU

=30860000000000km

On a 1m radius circle, 1" would cover about 5 um of the circumference

Front 32

Ancient Astronomy

Back 32

Purpose 1: Predict seasonal changes

Purpose 2: Assist travelers

Knowledge was guarded closely

Visual observations enhanced with ancient tools/devices

Guard knowledge by obscuring with myth, ritual

Front 33

Stonehenge

Back 33

3D calendar, tracked celestial events

Front 34

Ancient Chinese Astronomy

Back 34

Created detailed star maps

Used as calendar, aslo prophetic regarding dynasties

Observed "guest stars such as SN 1054

Front 35

Islamic Astronomy

Back 35

During Europe's Dark Ages, Islamic Astronomers improved upon Ancient Greek astronomy

Zenith, Azimuth, Altitude

Front 36

Zenith

Back 36

the direction directly overhead

Front 37

Azimuth

Back 37

The angle relative to North Direction

Front 38

Altitutde

Back 38

The angle relative to the horizon

Front 39

Geocentric Universe

Back 39

Ancient Greeks distinguished between Sun/Moon and the Stars

Front 40

What is the celestial dome?

Back 40

a sphere that covered the sky at night which carried the stars

Front 41

Geocentric Universe

Back 41

"Earth centred" all planets, stars, etc orbit the Earth

Front 42

Path of Planets

Back 42

Planets speed up and slow down and even reverse

Front 43

Prograde

Back 43

When planets move in the same direction as the stars

Front 44

Retrograde

Back 44

When the planets move in opposite direction of the stars

Front 45

Geocentric Theory (4)

Back 45

Needs to account for:

1. Motion of the stars

2. Motion of Sun and Moon

3. Brightness changes due to distance from Earth

4. Retrograde/prograde motion of planets

Front 46

Geocentric theory - epicycle

Back 46

a small circle whose center moves around the circumference of a larger one

Front 47

Geocentric theory - planets travel along an epicycle

Back 47

True

Front 48

T/F planets travel along the epicycle, the centre of which orbits the Earth along a deferent

Back 48

True

Front 49

How do geocentric models predict the future positions of planets?

Back 49

By adjusting the size of deferent, epicycle and the speed of each

Front 50

Improvements of Geocentric theory (2)

Back 50

Centre of deferents were offset from the Earth (no longer truly geocentric)

Deferents of inferior planets had to be tied to the Sun

Front 51

Ptolemaic Model

Back 51

Required 80 distinct circles

Front 52

Heliocentric Model

Back 52

More elegant theory than Geocentric and Plotemaic

Front 53

who rediscovered Aristarchus' Greek theory of heliocentricity - sun centred

Back 53

Copernicus

Front 54

What was the Copernican Revolution

Back 54

the heliocentric model

Front 55

Foundations of Coperniacan Revolution (7)

Back 55

1. Celestial spheres did not have single common centre

2. Earth is the centre of gravity and the centre of Moon's orbit

3. All other planets revolve around the sun

4. The stars (firmament) are much much further away from Earth than the Sun

5. The motion of the stars id due to the motion of the Earth (about its own axis) and stars are otherwise "fixed in place

6. The motion of the Sun during the day is also due to the rotation of the Earth

7. Retrograde motion is also due ot the motion of the Earth

Front 56

True or false - Planets orbit retrograde orbit in our solar system

Back 56

False, no planet in our solar system orbits retrograde

Front 57

True or flase Venus and Uranus rotate in retrograde?

Back 57

True, they rotate in retrograde

Front 58

Inferior Planets

Back 58

Orbit is closer to the Sun than Earth

Front 59

Superior planets

Back 59

Orbit is further from Sun

Front 60

Conjunction

Back 60

When the planets are close to the axis between Earth and the Sun

Front 61

Opposition

Back 61

When superior planets are opposite Earth in line with the Sun

Front 62

What were Galileo's Methods (2)

Back 62

1. Performed experiemtns to test predictions

2. Used a telescope which he built himself

Front 63

What did Galileo discover?

Back 63

1. Discovered/observbed that the moon had mountains, vallyes and craters

2. Observed sun spots (sun rotated!)

Front 64

Galileo and Jupiter

Back 64

Observed 4 small points of light near Jupiter which were:
1. always in proximity to Jupiter
2. Smaller than jupiter
3. moved back and forth across jupiter

Front 65

Galileo's explanation of the light near jupiter explained...

Back 65

four moons of Jupiter...clear evidence of an object NOT orbiting the earth

Front 66

Galielo and Venus

Back 66

Observed Venus and discoverd Venus orbiting the Sun, not an epicycle of a deferent

Front 67

James Bradley

Back 67

Observed 20" aberration of starlight (stellar parallax) in 1728

Front 68

Geocentricity was rejected when James Bradley observed aberration of starlight (stellar parallax)

Back 68

False, Took until 1838 for conclusive measurements of stellar parallax to completlely reject geocentricity

Front 69

Stellar parallax

Back 69

the apparent shift of postion of any nearby star against the backdrop of distant objects

Front 70

Tycho Brache

Back 70

Used naked eye measurements which were acccutrate toe date to 1'

Stars, planets, coments, SN

Front 71

Keplers Triangulation technique (3)

Back 71

1. Motion of the Earth to generate baseline distance

2. Referenced all measuremnts to R*earth (not known in kilometres, just an arbitrary unit, AU

3. Knowledge of the angle that Earth moved in 1 day (1/365 of a circle, close to 1 degree)

Front 72

Laws of Planetary Motion (3)

Back 72

1. Orbits are not Elliptical (not circular), with the Sun at one focus

2. Equal areas of the ellipse are swept out by a line connecting Sun Sun to the planet in equal intervals of time

✤3) The SQUARE of a planets orbital period is equal to the CUBE of its semimajor axis

Front 73

✤Laws of Planetary Motion(3)

Back 73

1) Orbits are ELLIPTICAL (not circular), with the Sun at one focus

2) Equal areas of the ellipse are swept out by a line connecting Sun to the planet in equal intervals of time

3) The SQUARE of a planets orbital period is equal to the CUBE of its semimajor axis

Front 74

True/ False: Elongation IS NOT described by the eccentricity

Back 74

False, Elongation IS described by the eccentricity

Front 75

T/F Sun sits at one point of the foci

Back 75

True

Front 76

Perihelion

Back 76

Closest approach

Front 77

Apheilioin

Back 77

Furthest approach

Front 78

Netwons Laws (3)

Back 78

1. Everything in motion, or at rest, continues on in that state until acted upon by an external force.

2. An unbalanced force leads to an acceleration

3. For every action (i.e. Force), there is an equal and opposite REaction.

Front 79

T/F Aristotle said “natural state of all things is at rest”

Back 79

True

Front 80

Newton's Law of Gravitation

Back 80

a) “Any object with mass exerts a gravitational force on all other objects”

✤b) Gravitational forces are ALWAYS attractive

c) The Earth has a large mass, and exerts a force on all objects on its surface