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LS Astronomy > Astronomy > Flashcards

Astronomy Flashcards

1
Q

which way does the earth rotate (looking down from North Pole)

A

counterclockwise

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2
Q

geocentric

A

the view that earth is the center of the universe

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3
Q

Which is the North Star?

A

Polaris

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4
Q

Which direction is Polaris?

A 
Always North (for northern hemisphere) 
It's very close to Celestial North
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5
Q

Celestial North

A

The point in the sky where straight north from the north pole. Polaris is very close to Celestial North.

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6
Q

How many constellations are there?

A

88

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7
Q

What are common Northern Sky constellations?

A

Casseiopeia, Ursa Major, Ursa Minor

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8
Q

Summarize the story behind Cassiopeia constellation

A

Named after queen of Ethiopia who was very vain and said she was prettier than nymphs in the sea, which made Poseidon the sea god mad

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9
Q

Who are the players in the Cassiopeia constellation story?

A

Cassiopeia - Vain Queen of Egypt

Poseidon -god of sea that was mad she drowned her daughter

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10
Q

What does Ursa Major mean and what language is it from?

A

Latin for Big Bear

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11
Q

What is an asterism?

A

It’s a constellation that is inside of another constellation. (Technically the smaller one isn’t a constellation, it’s an asterism.)

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12
Q

What are two of the most famous asterisms?

A

Little Dipper is inside the constellation Ursa Minor;

Big Dipper is inside the constellation Ursa Major.

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13
Q

Which asterism is Polaris in?

A

It’s the last star in the handle of the Little Dipper.

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14
Q

What is the story of Calisto?

A

Calisto was a nymph in Greek myth - was in a secret group of women who worshipped Artimas.

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15
Q

Which northern constellation is mentioned in Job?

A

Big Bear
Job 38-31-33 - Can you lead for the Mazzaroth in their season or can you guide the Bear with its children? (Also mentions a couple other constellations to be studied later.)

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16
Q

What did the ancients believe when the sun and planets didn’t rotate the same way as the stars?

A

The ancients thought that there were multiple celestial spheres rotating around the earth.

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17
Q

What is the Greek meaning of “planet”?

A

Wandering star

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18
Q

Did the Greeks understand that planets were planets?

A

No, they just thought they were wandering stars.

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19
Q

What is the path called that the sun takes through the sky?

A

Ecliptic

The planets stay pretty close to this as well.

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20
Q

Why do the planets follow the ecliptic line?

A

Because the planets are all pretty much lined up in a plane.

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21
Q

When was Uranus discovered?

A

1781

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22
Q

When was Neptune discovered?

A

1846

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23
Q

What was the furthest planet that the ancients knew about?

A

Saturn

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24
Q

Ancient peoples thought Saturn was what God?

A

Sikkuth and Kiyyun (star god - didn’t say who)
Molech (Canaanites)
Phoenecian’s - Baal-Human - threw children into fires for Molech
Cronus - youngest of 12 original titans - Greeks
Saturn - what the Romans renamed Cronus

Leviticus 18:21 - do not offer children to Molech

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25
Q

What was the Roman festival for Saturn?

A

Saturnalia - December festival where they turned social order upside down

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26
Q

What common calendar item is named after Saturn?

A

Saturday

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27
Q

What is Saturn’s mass compared to the earth?

A

95 times as large

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28
Q

What is Saturn’s circumference?

A

227,000 miles (9 times bigger than earth)

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29
Q

How long does one orbit around the sun take for Saturn?

A

Takes 29.45 earth years to revolve around the sun

It moves at 21,000 mph but since orbit is so big it takes a long time.

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30
Q

How long is a Saturn rotation on its axis?

A

Rotates at 10 hours 34 minutes - so fast it’s flattened out

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31
Q

What is Saturn made of?

A

Mostly hydrogen gas - one of the

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32
Q

What is the weather of Saturn?

A

-288 degrees F. Winds can be 1000 mph

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33
Q

Who first saw Saturn’s rings?

A

Galileo. He said they looked like ears. But they are particles 1 cm to a mile wide.

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34
Q

What is Saturn’s biggest moon?

A

Titan - it is 96% of the mass of other 60 moons AND the rings.

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35
Q

Who was the first to see Titan, and when?

A

Dutch guy Christiaan Huygens in 1655.

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36
Q

What are the lakes in Titan made of?

A

Liquid methane. Might be the most hospitable place for humans…has the right elements but cold!

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37
Q

What is Voyager 1 famous for?

A

It has left our solar system completely

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38
Q

What is Cassini?

A

Orbiting Saturn - finding moons, water on moon, sending back data, first probe to moon, landing in the outer planets.

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39
Q

Which direction does the earth spin

A

Eastward, so it makes it look like things are moving westward

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40
Q

What is the definition of a year?

A

The time it takes for the earth to orbit the sun

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41
Q

What is the ecliptic?

A

The path the sun takes through the sky

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42
Q

What does the Zodiac mean?

A

“Circle of animals”

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43
Q

How many constellations are there in the Zodiac?

A

12

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44
Q

Do you see the zodiac all of the time?

A

No, can only see some of them each season.

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45
Q

What does solstice mean?

A

“sun stands still”

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46
Q

Winter solstice

A

the sun is at the southernmost point below the celestial equator

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47
Q

What does equinox mean?

A

“equal night”

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48
Q

Arctic Circle

A

23.5 degrees from the North Pole

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49
Q

What is Land of the Midnight Sun?

A

The sun never sets because the arctic is facing the sunlight. In the top 23.5 degrees is the Arctic Circle. Six months of sunlight, six months of darkness.

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50
Q

Polar Night

A

The sun doesn’t rise for six months because it is always away from the sun.

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51
Q

Tropic of Cancer

A

23.5 degrees north of equator. The sun would be exactly above you (zenith) on the summer solstice. North of this, the sun doesn’t reach the zenith.

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52
Q

Tropic of Capricorn

A

23.5 degrees south of equator. On the winter solstice, the sun reaches the zenith.

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53
Q

When does the sun reach the zenith in the tropics.

A

Twice a year the sun reaches the zenith - once on the way toward north, once on the way toward south.

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54
Q

When does the sun reach the zenith on the equator?

A

Summer and Winter Solstices

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55
Q

Temperate Zone

A

The zone between the Tropic of Cancer and the Arctic.

56
Q

Where is there continual twilight and when?

A

Far north, near the summer solstice. (Or far south, near the winter solstice)

57
Q

Are the lines that make the Tropic of Cancer and Tropic of Capricorn latitude or longitude lines?

A

Latitude lines

58
Q

What is the Pisces Austrinus?

A

Pisces Austrinus which means “The Southern Fish”

It’s one of the few constellations with a bright star in the fall. More visible closer to equator.

59
Q

What is the bright star in the Pisces Austrinius constellation?

A

Fomalhaut which means “mouth of the fish” or “the lonely star of autumn.

60
Q

What does the Aquarius constellation mean?

A

Aquarius means water bearer - it’s a dim constellation.

61
Q

What does Aquarius mean to the Egyptians?

A

Appears when the Nile began to flood each year.

62
Q

What does Aquarius mean to the Greeks?

A

Story of Gananine???

63
Q

What is a Pisces about?

A

A big monster that Aphrodite and her son Eros changed themselves to fish to escape. Two fish with their tails tied together.

64
Q

What asterism is inside asterism?

A

The square inside Pegasus

65
Q

What does Pegasus represent?

A

A flying horse (just the front of it, upside down)

66
Q

Who was Medusa?

A

Snakes for hair, turn to stone if you look at her, beautiful and terrifying. Persius used special sword to kill her and Pegasus the flying horse came out of her. Persius rescues Andromeda by taking Medusa’s head to scare off the sea monster.

67
Q

What are the fall constellations?

A

Pisces Austrinus, Pisces, Andromeda, Casseopeia, Pegasus, Aquarius, Perseus

68
Q

What is the closest galaxy to the Milky Way?

A

The Andromeda Galaxy - 2.5 million lightyears away. 1.5 trillion stars

69
Q

How many galaxies are in the local group that the Milky Way is in?

A

about 50 in the local group -

about 10 million light years wide

70
Q

What is our supercluster called?

A

Laniakea Hawaiian word meaning “immeasurable heavens” - about 520 million light years.

71
Q

How many superclusters are there?

A

10,000,000

72
Q

How many stars that we can see are there in the universe?

A

1 plus 29 zeros

100,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000

73
Q

About how many galaxies are there in a supercluster?

A

100,000

74
Q

What does the word zodiac mean?

A

Circle of animals (Latin “zodiacos ciclum” or something like that)

75
Q

The path the sun takes through the sky

A

ecliptic

76
Q

What is the difference between astrology and astronomy?

A

astrology is about predicting the future saying the stars “mean” something;
astronomy studies the motions of the heavens for practical reasons

77
Q

What are the zodiac constellations?

A

Any Time Granny Covets Leo’s Vegan Lunch She Should Cut A Pizza.

Aries
Taurus
Gemini
Cancer
Leo
Virgo
Libra
Scorpius
Sagittarius
Capricornus
Aquarius
Pisces
78
Q

Where does the Bible talk about the zodiac?

A

Job 38:31-32 - can you bind the chains of Pleiades? or loose the cord of the Orion? Can you lead for the Mazzaroth (the zodiac) in their season or can you guide the bear with its children?

Psalm 19 - God set in the heavens a tent for the sun. In ancient times, the sun was said
to move through 12 tents or 12 houses throughout the course of the year.
This is a reference to the constellations of the Zodiac

79
Q

Which of these is not a reason God created the stars:

  1. To give light to the earth
  2. To mark days and years
  3. To separate day from night
  4. To predict the future
  5. To mark seasons
  6. To help us navigate the earth
A
  1. To predict the future
80
Q

What does Astrology mean

A

the study of stars

81
Q

What does Astronomy mean

A

the law of stars

82
Q

What did ancient Jews call the zodiac constellations?

A

Mazzaroth

83
Q

Which constellations are mentioned in Job?

A

Orion
Pleiades
Ursa Major

84
Q

How many superclusters are there?

A

100,000

85
Q

Where do the zodiac constellations lie?

A

Along the ecliptic

86
Q

What does Psalm 19 say?

A

Psalm 19: The heavens declare the glory of god and the sky above proclaims his handiwork.

In them (the 12 zodiac constellations) he has set a tent for the sun…

87
Q

How many constellations of the zodiac can you see at once?

A

six (half of the sphere)

88
Q

What are the two bright stars in Gemini?

A

Pollux and Castor

89
Q

What is the story that goes with Pollux and Castor?

A

They are known as princes of Sparta, sons of Queen Leda, and were aboard a ship with Jason and the storm calmed. Became a sailor’s god.

90
Q

How does the Bible refer to Pollux and Castor?

A

It was an Alexandrian ship with the heads of Pollux and Castor on it

91
Q

What is the blue/purple glow on a ship (and what is it)?

A

It’s called St. Elmo’s Fire and it is caused by electricity in a thunderstorm.

92
Q

What is the story about them (later)?

A

The immortal brother asked to become mortal to be with his brother. Zeus instead had them switch daily and it’s an example of brotherly love.

93
Q

What is the Taurus

A

Zeus turned himself into a white bull to lure a woman to the island of Crete.
Sumarians saw it as a bull - it’s in the Epic of Gilgamesh. Ishtar asks for bull of heaven.

94
Q

What is the brightest star in Taurus?

A

Aldebaran, a first magnitude orange star 44x times bigger than the sun.

95
Q

What is Aries?

A

The ram - very faint.

96
Q

Why was Aries important when it’s faint?

A

The sun used to be in Aries at the Vernal Equinox. Signaled a new season.

97
Q

What does Capricornus mean?

A

Sea Goat, half fish, half goat. In winter solstice. Sun used to be in the constellation in the winter solstice. Was called the southern gate to the sun, or the cave of the sun’s rising. Tropic of Capricorn is named after this.

98
Q

What is the story of Capricornus?

A

Pan - a man-goat, shepherd companion. Escaped from something by jumping in water and swimming away.

99
Q

Which model of the world is when you think everything revolves around the earth?

A

Geocentric model

100
Q

What

A

Planet means Wandering Stars

101
Q

What did the ancients think the planets were?

A

Wandering stars because they didn’t follow the rules

102
Q

Who came to earth as weary travelers and who was hospitable to them and where did it happen?

A

Zeus and Hermes were the gods that came to earth.
Bacchus and Philemon were hospitable.
It happened in modern day Turkey, in Lystra.
The gods destroyed the city with a flood and their house became a temple that they guarded until they turned into

103
Q

What story from the Bible happened here?

A

The gods have come down to us in the likeness of men. They called Barnabas “Zeus” and called Paul “Hermes” and the people brought a bunch of offerings to them. Paul and Barnabas said they are just men and pointed them to God instead. from Acts 14:8-15.

104
Q

What was Zeus’ (the king god) Roman name?

A

Jupiter

105
Q

What were the various names of Zeus?

A

Romans = Jupiter
Greeks = Zeus
Germanic = Thor - chief of lightning
Babylonians - Marduk

106
Q

Why was Jupiter considered the king of the gods?

A
  1. Because it’s bright (-1 1/2 magnitude to -3 magnitude). There are only three things brighter - Venus, the moon and the sun.
  2. It takes Jupiter 1 year to go through each zodiac sign.
107
Q

How big is Jupiter?

A

2.5 times bigger than all the planets combined.

318 times bigger than earth.

88,846 miles diameter. 11 times the diameter of the earth.

Circumference - 272, 946 miles

108
Q

How many earth years is a Jupiter year?

A

11.86 years (this is why it is in each zodiac constellation for a year)

109
Q

How long is one rotation on its axis (a Jupiter day) in earth time?

A

It’s the fastest spinning planet - 9 hours and 56 minutes per rotation.

110
Q

Is Jupiter a gas giant or a rocky planet?

A

Mostly gas. Deep in, it becomes liquid, and maybe there is a rocky metal core.

Mostly hydrogen gas like the sun.

111
Q

What is the surface temperature?

A

-162 degrees fahrenheit. (Not as cold as Saturn, but cold.

112
Q

Clouds on Jupiter are made up of what?

A

Ammonia crystal and sulfur

113
Q

Talk about Jupiter’s red spot.

A

First seen 1660’s maybe, but observed for sure since 1880s.

Winds are 250 mph. Six days to get around the whole spot.

Three earths fit in red spot.

114
Q

Which satellite took the first great pictures of the red spot in 1979?

A

Voyager 1

115
Q

What comet collided with Jupiter?

A

Shoemaker Levy 9

116
Q

Which planet has the most moons?

A

Over 60 on Jupiter, the most according to the video.

Saturn, according to Alex, since new ones discovered since the video was made.

117
Q

What is special about the four biggest moons of Jupiter?

A

They were discovered by Galileo and are called the Galilean moons. They are huge - everything else orbiting is .003% of the total.

They were the first

118
Q

What are the names of the Galilean moons?

A

Europa (Phonecian woman that Zeus tried to get by turning into a bull)
Io (Zeus changed her into a cow so wife Hera wouldn’t suspect)
Callisto (Beautiful nymph Zeus tried to get by turning into Artemis and then she ended up in the sky as a bear Ursa Major)
Ganymede (Prince of Troy that became the cupbearer - constellation Aquarius)

119
Q

What is there to know about Europa?

A

It’s a water-ice rock, might have liquid water underneath.
sixth biggest moon in solar system
smallest of the four
smoothest object n solar system

120
Q

Io

A

100 mountains, some taller than Everest

Sulfur and sulfur dioxide gas

121
Q

Callisto

A 
3rd largest moon in the solar system
made of rock, maybe a subterranean ocean
carbon dioxide 
very cratered 
best place to live for humans
122
Q

Ganymede

A 
largest moon in solar system
larger than Mercury
1/3 covered in craters
thin oxygen 
largest of Jupiter's moon
123
Q

Which constellation actually kind of looks like what it is an is easy to find because it has 3 really bright stars?

A

Orion

124
Q

Which constellation is mentioned in the Bible more than any other.

A

Orion

125
Q

Which constellation has 3 stars on its belt right at the c

A

Orion

126
Q

Which star is in Orion, is a red super-giant, and how big is it? Where is it in Orion?

A

Betelgeuse. It is in Orion’s left shoulder and 300-400 times the diameter of the sun.

127
Q

How far away is Betelgeuse and how bright is it compared to other stars

A

9th brightest star in the sky and is 640 light years away

128
Q

Where does the name Betelgeuse come from?

A

The hand of the central one, from Arabic

129
Q

Which star is the 7th brightest star in the sky, and where is it in Orion?

A

Rigel. In the right knee of Orion

130
Q

What are facts about Rigel?

A

40,000 brighter than the sun if they were at the same place. It’s super-hot - we’d have to live 200 times as far away as we are from the sun (or 5 times as far away as Pluto)

It’s 773 light years away.

131
Q

What does Rigel’s name mean?

A

Left leg of the great one (but it’s the right knee)

132
Q

What is interesting about the three stars on the sword of Orion?

A

The middle one is actually a nebula, not a star

133
Q

What is a nebula?

A

Group of clouds of dust and gases

134
Q

How big is the Orion nebula?

A

24 light years across

135
Q

What did the Aborigines in Australia think Orion was

A

A canoe holding 3 guys fishing, and one of them caught the forbidden fish, so they were captured and sun goddess “Aloo” or “Waloo” pulled them into to the sky in a waterspout to remind people not to catch the forbidden fish

136
Q

What did all the ancient people think Orion was?

A 
Syrian/Ancient Arabs: The Giant
Iceland:  The Armed King
Greeks: Warrior Hero Orion - that one stuck
Mayan: The Warrior
Navajo:  The slim one (young warrior)
137
Q

Who was Orion’s dad? What’s the story?

A

Poseidon, god of the sea. Orion can walk on water. So Orion walked across the Agean Sea. He was taken in as King Onamopium’s huntsman. Onamopium’s name means wine drinker.
Orion was at a party and got drunk and flirted with the King’s daughter, so he gouged Orions eyes. He asked Ephestus? or Thestus? for help and his apprentice guided him. They went to Helios the sun god who healed them.
Another Legend: Hunting with Artemis

LS Astronomy (2 decks)

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