Deck 4: The Origin of Modern Astronomy

Question 1

The geometry of an ellipse is described by two numbers: the ____ which is half the longest diameter of the ellipse and the ____ which tells us the shape of the ellipse.

A) radius, eccentricity
B) radius, deferent
C) semimajor axis, deferent
D) semimajor axis, epicycle
E) semimajor axis, eccentricity

Answer 1

semimajor axis, eccentricity

Question 2

Spring tides occur

A) at new moon and first quarter moon.
B) at first quarter and third quarter moons.
C) at new moon and full moon.
D) at third quarter and full moons.
E) at noon and midnight.

Answer 2

at new moon and full moon.

Question 3

A(n) ____ is a commonly accepted set of scientific ideas and assumptions.

A) theory
B) paradigm
C) hypothesis
D) natural law
E) model

Answer 3

paradigm

Question 4

Tycho Brahe's greatest contribution to astronomy was

A) his model of the universe.
B) his telescopic observations.
C) his discovery of three laws of motion.
D) his 20 years of careful observations of the planets.
E) a and b above

Question 5

A(n) ____ is a small circle whose center is located on the circumference of another larger circle.

A) equant
B) deferent
C) retrograde loop
D) ellipse
E) epicycle

Question 6

The Copernican system was no more accurate than the Ptolemaic system in predicting the positions of the planets because ___________just as in the Ptolemaic system.

A) the Copernican system assumed the Earth was at rest at the center
B) the Copernican system used elliptical planetary orbits
C) the Copernican system used uniform circular motion
D) the Copernican system assumed all planets orbited the sun

Question 7

Tycho failed to detect ______ for the nova of 1572 indicating it was ______.

A) parallax; beyond the orbit of Earth's moon
B) parallax; inside the Earth's atmosphere close to Earth
C) light; beyond the orbit of Earth's moon
D) light; inside the Earth's atmosphere close to Earth

Question 8

Ptolemy's model of the universe

A) was heliocentric.
B) included elliptical orbits.
C) contained epicycles.
D) all of the above.
E) none of the above.

Question 9

Tycho's universe was the same as the Copernican universe except that

A) Earth did not move.
B) the sun did not move.
C) the moon orbited the sun.
D) the orbits were elliptical with the sun at one focus.
E) the orbits followed uniform circular motion.

Question 10

Retrograde motion (east to west among the stars) is observed

A) for some planets as Earth passes between that planet and the sun.
B) for the sun during the entire year.
C) for Earth's moon during an entire month.
D) none of the above.

Question 11

A(n) ____ is a single conjecture that can be tested.

A) hypothesis
B) paradigm
C) natural law
D) model
E) theory

Question 12

____ orbit is one in which an object orbiting Earth has an orbital period equal to the rotation period of Earth.

A) A daily
B) A lunar
C) An epicycle
D) A geosynchronous
E) An open

Question 13

Parallax is

A) the apparent motion of an object due to the motion of the observer.
B) the distance between two foci of an ellipse.
C) the small circle that the planets slid along in Ptolemy's geocentric universe.
D) the circular orbits used in Copernicus' heliocentric universe.
E) half the length of the shortest diameter of an ellipse.

Question 14

Galileo's telescopic discoveries of mountains on the moon and spots on the sun were controversial because they suggested that the sun and moon

A) were the same kind of object.
B) were not perfect spheres.
C) were inhabited.
D) orbited each other.
E) did not orbit Earth.

Question 15

Which of the following people did NOT accept a heliocentric model for the universe?

A) Kepler
B) Copernicus
C) Tycho
D) Galileo
E) Newton

Question 16

The semimajor axis of an ellipse is

A) the ratio of the longest diameter of the ellipse to that of the shortest diameter of the ellipse.
B) half the length of the shortest diameter of the ellipse.
C) half the length of the longest diameter of the ellipse.
D) the distance between the two foci of the ellipse.
E) the ratio of the distance between the two foci to the length of half the longest diameter of the ellipse.

Question 17

The book "De Revolutionibus Orbium Coelestium"

A) describes how Galileo's observations and Kepler's calculations proved the Copernican theory.
B) describes the construction of Galileo's telescope and his observations.
C) is a dialog written to convince the general public of the merits of the Copernican theory.
D) first described the Copernican theory.
E) describes the Tychonian theory.

Question 18

A(n) ____ is well supported (observationally and/or experimentally) system of rules and principles that can be applied to a wide variety of circumstances.

A) hypothesis
B) paradigm
C) theory
D) model

Question 19

____ occur when the moon is first or third quarter.

A) Neap tides
B) Spring tides
C) Total solar eclipses
D) Annular eclipses
E) A coppery red moon will

Question 20

Galileo's observations of a complete set of phases of Venus proved

A) that Venus orbited the sun.
B) that Earth orbited the sun.
C) that all of the planets orbited the sun.
D) that the moon orbited Earth.
E) that Venus had an atmosphere.

Question 21

If the mass of the Earth decreased by a factor of two with no change in radius, your weight would

A) increase by a factor of 4.
B) increase by a factor of 2.
C) stay the same.
D) decrease by a factor of 2.
E) decrease by a factor of 4.

Question 22

Gravity obeys an inverse square relation. This statement implies that the force due to gravity between two masses

A) will increase as the distance between the two masses increases.
B) will decrease as the square of the distance between the two masses increases.
C) will cause the two masses to move away from each other.
D) will cause the two masses to move in a straight line.
E) will cause the two masses to orbit each other.

Question 23

Halley's comet has an orbital period of 76 years, what is the average distance of Comet Halley from the sun?

A) 51 AU
B) 18 AU
C) 114 AU
D) 660 AU
E) 38 AU

Question 24

The force of gravity from one object extends to infinity never going to zero. When we say that gravitation is universal we mean that

A) the Earth exerts gravitational force on objects on its surface.
B) the Earth exerts a gravitational force on its moon and vice versa.
C) the Earth, moon, and sun exert gravitational forces on each other.
D) all material objects in the universe exert gravitational forces on one another.

Question 25

The force due to gravity between two objects depends on

A) I & II
B) I & III
C) II & IV
D) I, II, & III
E) I, II, III, & IV

Question 26

An apparent westward motion of a planet in the sky compared to the background stars (as viewed from Earth) when observed on successive nights is referred to as

A) epicycle.
B) retrograde motion.
C) prograde motion.
D) heliocentric motion.
E) deferent.

Question 27

The purpose of using epicycles and deferents to explain the motion of the planets in the night sky was to account for

A) prograde motion.
B) Mercury's and Venus's limited angular distance from the sun.
C) retrograde motion.
D) non-uniform speed of the planets in their orbits.
E) precession of the equinoxes.

Question 28

Newton concluded that a force from the Earth had to act on the moon because

A) a force is needed to keep the moon in motion in its orbit.
B) a force is needed to pull the moon outward.
C) a force is needed to accelerate the moon toward Earth away from straight-line motion.
D) the moon moved at a constant velocity in a straight line.
E) all of the above.

Question 29

The diagram below illustrates a portion of the model for the universe described by

A) Kepler.
B) Tycho.
C) Ptolemy.
D) Copernicus.
E) Galileo.

Question 30

Kepler's second law implies that

A) a planet should move at its greatest speed when it is closest to the sun.
B) the most massive planets will have the greatest speed in their orbits.
C) the speed of a planet in its orbit depends on the size of the epicycle.
D) the mass of the planet determines how far the planet is from the sun.
E) the deferent and the epicycle have to be attached to the sun and not Earth.

Question 31

Which of the following books of tabulated predicted planet positions was not based on uniform circular motion?

A) the Rudolphine Tables by Kepler
B) the Prutenic Tables based on Copernicus' model
C) the Alphonsine Tables based on Ptolemy's observations and calculations

Question 32

Saturn is on average 10 AU from the sun. What is the approximate orbital period of Saturn?

A) 10 years
B) 32 years
C) 100 years
D) 1000 years
E) 1,000,000 years

Question 33

The period of Jupiter's orbit around the sun is approximately 12 years. What is the approximate distance from the sun to Jupiter?

A) 144 AU
B) 1728 AU
C) 42 AU
D) 5.2 AU
E) 2.3 AU

Question 34

Which of the following objects cannot transit (i.e., pass in front of) the sun as seen from Jupiter?

A) Mars
B) Earth
C) Saturn
D) Mercury
E) Venus

Question 35

The ____ of an object is a measure of the amount of matter it contains. On the other hand ____ is a measure of the gravitational force on an object.

A) weight; mass
B) mass; weight
C) energy; force
D) force; energy
E) momentum; energy

Question 36

An object has been located orbiting the sun at a distance from the sun of 65 AU. What is the approximate orbital period of this object?

A) 65 years
B) 275,000 years
C) 4225 years
D) 8.1 years
E) 524 years

Question 37

In pre-Copernican astronomy, it was almost universally believed that

A) the planets traveled in elliptical orbits about Earth.
B) the center of the universe was the sun with the Milky Way representing other distant planets.
C) the sun was at the center of the universe.
D) Earth was at the center of the universe.
E) None of the above was believed.

Question 38

Kepler's first law of planetary motion implies that

A) the planets move at a constant speed at all points in their orbits.
B) the planets all move around Earth in elliptical orbits.
C) uniform circular motion is adequate to describe the motion of all planets.
D) planets move in elliptical orbits around the sun.

Question 39

When Mars is located directly behind Earth with respect to the sun in its orbit, it is

A) at the midpoint in the sky between east and west at sunset.
B) at the midpoint in the sky between east and west at midnight.
C) at the midpoint in the sky between east and west at sunrise.
D) at the midpoint in the sky between east and west at noon.
E) not visible in the night sky.

Question 40

Which of the following planets can be seen as a crescent phase from Earth?

A) Mercury
B) Venus
C) Mars
D) both a and b
E) all of the above

Question 41

The orbit of the planet Jupiter is an ellipse with the sun at one focus. What is located at the other focus?

A) the asteroid belt
B) Earth
C) Saturn
D) Jupiter
E) nothing

Question 42

What is the circular velocity of an object orbiting Earth at a distance of 100,000 km from Earth's center? G = 6.67*10^-11 m³.kg^-1.s^-2; M_Earth = 5.98*10²⁴kg

A) 2 m/s
B) 20 m/s
C) 200 m/s
D) 2000 m/s
E) 20,000 m/s

Question 43

Kepler used Tycho's observations to show that the planets

A) followed perfectly circular orbits.
B) followed perfectly cubical orbits.
C) all circled the earth.
D) followed elliptical orbits.

Question 44

Direct motion of a planet is its normal motion ____________ among the stars.

A) west to east along the ecliptic
B) east to west along the ecliptic
C) west to east along the celestial equator
D) east to west along the celestial equator

Question 45

Why did Galileo's observations of moons orbiting Jupiter disagree with geocentric model of the universe of his time?

A) The moons moved in non-circular orbits about Jupiter.
B) The moons did not appear to orbit the sun.
C) The moons did not appear to orbit Earth.
D) The moons appeared to be too small, and therefore too far away, to be considered part of the solar system.

Question 46

The eccentricity of a planet's orbit describes

A) westward motion in the night sky when observed on successive nights.
B) the deviation in shape when compared to a circle.
C) its tilt with respect to the ecliptic plane.
D) the tilt of the planet's rotational axis with respect to the ecliptic.

Question 47

The vernal equinox is the point on the sky where the sun crosses the ____________ going north and east.

A) north celestial pole
B) south celestial pole
C) celestial equator
D) horizon

Question 48

The greatest inaccuracy in Copernicus's model of the solar system was that the planets

A) traveled in circular orbits with uniform motion.
B) traveled on epicycles whose centers followed orbits around the sun.
C) traveled in elliptical orbits.
D) were allowed to travel backwards in their orbits.
E) orbited the sun.

Question 49

Galileo's telescopic discovery of moons orbiting Jupiter was important because it showed that

A) the universe could contain centers of motion other than Earth.
B) Earth might move along an orbit and not leave the moon behind.
C) Jupiter was much more massive than Earth.
D) all of the above.
E) a and b above.

Question 50

Tides occur because the gravitational force of the moon on Earth ____ with increasing distance from the moon.

A) stays constant
B) increases
C) decreases

Question 51

The Almagest

A) is the book that first described the heliocentric solar system.
B) is a collection of the science and mathematics of the Greeks.
C) caused the author to be sentenced to house arrest.
D) is a book of astrological myths and predictions produced by the Arabs.
E) first described the Copernican theory.

Question 52

Galileo used a telescope to discover

A) spots on the sun.
B) craters on the moon.
C) moons around Jupiter.
D) moon-like phases of Venus.
E) all of these.

Question 53

The ____ produce(s) tides on the Earth.

A) moon alone
B) sun alone
C) moon and sun

Question 54

Newton's law of gravitational force is expressed as follows:

A) An object with no force on it moves in a straight line with constant velocity.
B) An object with a force on it is accelerated in the direction of the force an amount inversely proportional to its mass and directly proportional to the size of the force.
C) For every action there is an equal and opposite reaction.
D) The force between two objects is directly proportional to the product of their masses and inversely proportional to the distance between them squared.

Question 55

In Ptolemy's view of the universe, a planet moves on an epicycle whose center moves around the Earth on the deferent circle.

A) Correct
B) FALSE; Ptolemy put the sun at the center.
C) FALSE; The planet stays on the deferent circle.
D) FALSE; Earth is at the center of the epicycle.
E) FALSE; Both c and d are correct.

Question 56

A comet in a highly elliptical orbit is found to have a semimajor axis equal to one astronomical unit (AU). According to Kepler's 3rd law, what would be the sidereal period of this comet?

A) more than one year
B) one year
C) less than one year
D) 76 years; the same for every comet
E) Not enough information is given to determine this.

Question 57

Which type of curve would accurately represent a closed orbit?

A) ellipse
B) hyperbola
C) parabola
D) straight line

Question 58

Which of the following statements best describes Kepler's 3rd law of planetary motion?

A) The smaller the diameter of a planet, the faster its rotational period is.
B) The orbital period of a planet is directly proportional to the diameter of the planet.
C) The smaller the orbit, the longer its orbital period is.
D) The larger the orbit, the longer its orbital period is.

Question 59

A(n) ____ orbit is one where the orbiting object is always above the same location on Earth's surface.

A) elliptical
B) geosynchronous
C) closed
D) hyperbolic
E) parabolic

Question 60

The circular velocity of a satellite orbiting Earth is given by . In this equation,

A) M represents the mass of the satellite, and r is its radius.
B) M represents the mass of Earth, and r the radius of Earth.
C) M represents the mass of the satellite, and r the distance from Earth to the satellite.
D) M represents the mass of Earth, and r the distance from Earth to the satellite.
E) M represents the mass of the satellite, and r the distance from Earth's surface to the satellite.

Question 61

Copernicus proposed that Earth moved around the sun.

Question 62

The Copernican model of the solar system has the planets orbit the sun along elliptical paths.

Question 63

Once a theory has been tested thoroughly and is confidently believed by scientists, it becomes a ____________________.

Question 64

According to Kepler's third law, a planet's orbital period ____________________ is equal to its average distance from the sun ____________________.

Question 65

Classical Greek astronomers believed the motions of the heavens could be described by uniform circular motion.

Question 66

Tables based on a heliocentric model of the universe which used elliptical orbits for the planets were more accurate than ____________________.

Question 67

The ____________________ Tables were based on a heliocentric model of the universe and used elliptical orbits for the planets.

Question 68

The Ptolemaic model of the universe was heliocentric.

Question 69

The first observations of objects in the solar system that orbited neither the sun nor Earth were made by ____________________.

Question 70

When two objects of unequal masses orbit each other, the center of mass is

A) at the center of the more massive object.
B) at the center of the least massive object.
C) half way between the centers of each object.
D) always closer to the less massive of the two objects.
E) always closer to the more massive of the two objects.

Question 71

____________________ made very accurate observations of the positions and movements of the planets that were later used to help develop the Rudolphine Tables.

Question 72

Uranus's orbital period is 84 years. How far is Uranus from the sun?

Question 73

A scientific model can never be exactly correct.

Question 74

Which planets are never visible near the eastern horizon at sunset?

Question 75

A(n) ____________________ is a circle whose center moves in a circular orbit around the Earth.

Question 76

The first modern astronomer to propose a heliocentric model for the solar system was ____________________.

Question 77

____________________ is a description of the Ptolemaic model of the solar system.

Question 78

Many classical Greek astronomers believed Earth could not move because they detected no parallax.

Question 79

Ptolemy formulated a(n) ____________________ model of the solar system to predict positions of the sun, moon, and planets.

Question 80

Ocean tides of low amplitude that occur at first and third quarter moons are called ____________________.