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Physics > Astronomy (paper1) > Flashcards

Astronomy (paper1) Flashcards

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1
Q

What’s the geocentric model

A

Where everything orbits around the earth

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2
Q

Who’s idea was the geocentric model

A

Ptolemy

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3
Q

What’s the heliocentric model

A

Where everything revolves around the sun

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4
Q

Why is it called heliocentric

A

Helio means helium which is made on the sun, and centric means at the centre

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5
Q

Who’s idea was the heliocentric model

A

Polish astronomer Copernicus

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6
Q

When was the telescope invented

A

End of the 16th century

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7
Q

What did the telescope allow scientists to do

A

See objects in space in much greater detail and to find new objects

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8
Q

What did Galileo discover

A

Jupiters 4 moons

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9
Q

What did Galileo show by plotting the movements of jupiters moons

A

He showed that not everything orbited earth

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10
Q

What’s the definition of a star

A

A huge ball of gas that radiates energy

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11
Q

What’s the definition of a planet

A

A celestial body moving in an orbit around a star

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12
Q

What’s the definition of a galaxy

A

Billions of stars together-ours is called the Milky Way

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13
Q

What’s the definition of the solar system

A

The sun, planets, moon, asteroids and comets make up this

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14
Q

What planets were discovered after telescopes improved

A

Uranus, Neptune and dwarf plant Pluto.

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15
Q

Where are asteroids most commonly found

A

Between the orbits of mars and Jupiter

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16
Q

What are comets mostly made up of

A

Ice

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17
Q

How many planets and dwarf planets are in our solar system

A

8 planets and 5 dwarf planets

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18
Q

What shape are the planets’ orbits

A

Elliptical (squashed circle)

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19
Q

What is another name for a moon

A

A natural satellite

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20
Q

What did the invention of photographs allow astronomers to do

A

Make more detailed observations and measurements than drawing

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21
Q

How have computers helped astronomy

A

They increase the speed and detail with which information from satellites can be analysed

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22
Q

What are computers used for in astronomy

A

Analysing

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23
Q

What’s an advantage of telescopes in orbit

A

They have much clearer images than ground-based telescopes

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24
Q

How come orbiting telescopes give clearer images?

A

Clouds and dust in the air don’t interfere with the picture

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25
Q

What’s another way that we investigate our solar system

A

By using space probes

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26
Q

What does the Spitzer Space telescope detect

A

Infrared radiation from objects in space

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27
Q

When was the first soft landing on a comet

A

2014

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28
Q

What is the strength of gravity like of comets

A

Thousands of times weaker than the earths gravity

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29
Q

What was the lander called that landed on the comet

A

The Philae

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30
Q

How was the Philae lander designed to keep it on the surface of the comet

A

It’s landing legs were fitted with screws, it had harpoons and a small thruster

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31
Q

What happened to the Philae lander

A

When it tried to land, it bounced 1 km away from the surface before eventually landing

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32
Q

Define weight

A

Your weight is the force of gravity acting on you

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33
Q

What does your weight depend on

A

Your mass and the gravitational field strength of the earth

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34
Q

What is gravitational field strength measured in

A

N/kg

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35
Q

What ‘‘tis earths gravitational field strength

A

9.81 n/kg

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36
Q

What does the gravitational field strength on the surface of a body depend on

A

The mass of the body, and the distance from the centre to its surface (its radius)

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37
Q

The greater the mass and the smaller it’s radius the what?

A

The greater it’s surface gravity

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38
Q

What are the orbits of comets like

A

They are highly elliptical

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39
Q

What are artificial satellites used for

A

Communications and to observe the earth and space

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40
Q

What does the type of orbit for an artificial satellite depend on

A

It depends on what it’s used for

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41
Q

What are the four types of orbit for an artificial satellite

A

Polar orbit, highly elliptical orbit, circular geostationary orbits, and low earth orbits

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42
Q

What is circular geostationary orbits used for

A

They are used for broadcasting as they stay in the same place

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43
Q

How fast do satellites in circular geostationary orbits go

A

3070 m/s

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44
Q

Which type of orbit needs the least amount of energy to launch

A

Low earth orbit

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45
Q

How fast do satellites in low earth orbit go

A

7500m/s

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46
Q

What are highly elliptical orbits used for

A

Communication in parts of the earth near the poles

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47
Q

What happens to a satellite in polar orbit

A

It eventually passes over all parts of the earth

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48
Q

Describe what happens to a satellite in a circular orbit

A

It’s speed stays the same but it’s direction is constantly changing

49
Q

What is velocity

A

A vector quantity

50
Q

What does an orbiting body have

A

A constantly changing velocity

51
Q

What happens to a moving object when a force acts on it

A

It will change speed or direction

52
Q

Why do satellites change direction and not speed

A

Because the gravitational force between the earth and the satellite is at right angles to the direction of movements so force changes its direction and not the speed

53
Q

When is the gravitational force on a satellite greater?

A

When it’s in low orbit

54
Q

What does the satellite in low orbit have to do to stay in the correct place

A

It must go faster than in higher orbit

55
Q

What would happen to a satellite if it slowed down

A

It would fall towards the earth

56
Q

What happens when a satellite is falling towards the earth

A

It gains speed, and when it’s going fast enough it will stay in that new, lower orbit

57
Q

What happens if the satellite goes low enough to encounter the atmosphere

A

Contact with the air would slow it down and it would eventually fall to the earth

58
Q

What does the sun do for our planet

A

Provides enough energy to keep Earth at a liveable temperature

59
Q

What is the next stage for the sun

A

To turn into a red giant

60
Q

What will happen when the sun turns into a red giant

A

It will expand and swallow earth

61
Q

Why isn’t the sun turning a red giant a problem for humans

A

Because the heat from the sun will kill all life before it happens

62
Q

Why won’t the sun ever become a red supergiant

A

Because it’s not heat enough

63
Q

What is a nebula

A

A collection of dust and gases

64
Q

What gas mainly exists in a nebula

A

Hydrogen

65
Q

How does the sun provide thermal energy

A

Nuclear fusion(between helium and hydrogen)

66
Q

How are the particles in a nebula pulled together

A

By their own gravitational force

67
Q

What happens when a nebula cloud condenses

A

It becomes denser and the hydrogen becomes hotter as it spirals inwards

68
Q

What happens when more mass is attracted to a nebula

A

The gravitational pull gets stronger and heats the material up even more

69
Q

What is a made after a nebula has gone through all the phases

A

A protostar

70
Q

What happens when the pressures and temperatures in the protostar become high enough

A

It forces hydrogen nuclei to fuse and make helium

71
Q

What type of radiation do fusion reactions cause

A

A lot of Electromagnetic radiation

72
Q

What balances out the outward pressure from the hot gases due to compression?

A

Gravity balances it out

73
Q

What stage is our sun in

A

THe main sequence stage

74
Q

What stage comes after hydrogen fusion of the protostar

A

The main sequence stage

75
Q

How long do stars like our sun stay stable for

A

10 billion years

76
Q

What happens to a star once it’s reached the end of the main sequence

A

They have fused most of their hydrogen and helium, and the core isn’t hot enough to withstand the gravity and it collapses. The outer layers expand to form a red giant, which is a lot bigger

77
Q

What fusion reactions happen inside a red giant

A

Combining helium nuclei to form heavier elements

78
Q

How long does the star stay a red giant for

A

A billion years

79
Q

What happens after a star has been a red giant for a billion years

A

It throws off a shell of gas and the rest of the planet collapses to form a white dwarf which is much smaller

80
Q

What happens inside a white dwarf

A

No union reactions take place, so it cools down for about a billion years and then forms a black dwarf

81
Q

What are some characteristics of stars that are considerably larger than the sun(in mass)

A

They are hotter and brighter

82
Q

What happens to massive main sequence stars

A

They fuse hydrogen and helium faster so they become a red super giant

83
Q

What happens at the end of a red supergiant period

A

It rapidly collapses then explodes into a supernova

84
Q

What happens to the outer layers of a red supergiant after it explodes

A

They are cast off and expand outwards

85
Q

What happens to a supernova if it’s mass is 4 times that of the suns

A

Gravity pulls the remains together and makes a black hole

86
Q

Why can’t light escape out of a black hole

A

Because the gravitational pull is so strong

87
Q

What happens if the remains of a red supergiant aren’t big enough to for a black hole

A

Gravity pulls them together to form a very dense, small star called a neutron stars

88
Q

What does measuring red shift show us

A

That objects that are further away are moving faster than objects that are close to us

89
Q

What does red shift explain

A

That the universe is expanding

90
Q

When was the Big Bang theory first explained

A

In the 1920s

91
Q

Explain the Big Bang theory

A

It’s the theory that the whole universe and all the matter in it started off as a tiny point of concentrated energy 13.5 billion years ago

92
Q

What is the other theory that opposes the Big Bang

A

The steady state theory

93
Q

What is the steady state theory

A

The theory where new matter fills up the space when the universe expands

94
Q

What does the Big Bang theory say about radiation

A

That huge amounts of radiation was released

95
Q

How was CMBR found

A

By accident while two astronomers were building a radio telescope

96
Q

What has happened to the wavelength of CMBR seen as though the earth is expanding

A

The wavelengths have increased, so it can now only be destructed as microwave radiation

97
Q

What does CMBR stand for

A

Cosmic microwave background radiation

98
Q

What do both the Big Bang theory and the steady strategy theory say

A

That the universe is expanding

99
Q

Does redshift support both theories

A

Yes

100
Q

What theory does CMBR support

A

Big Bang, as steady state does not say this

101
Q

Which theory is more widely accepted by astronomers

A

The Big Bang

102
Q

What does the pitch of a sound depend on

A

Frequency of a sound wave

103
Q

What’s the Doppler effect

A

The effect that when a sound gets further away from you, the pitch gets lower

104
Q

What makes the wavelengths of a sound wave get longer

A

When the sound waves are behind a moving sound source, so they become stretched

105
Q

What does making the wavelengths longer effect

A

It lowers their frequency which in turn lowers the pitch

106
Q

What happens if a sound wave is in front of a moving sound source

A

The opposite

107
Q

What is the condition with the Doppler effect

A

It only happens if you are moving at a different speed or velocity to the moving sound source

108
Q

What other type of wave can have a Doppler effect

A

A light wave

109
Q

What does the visible spectrum of light from stars contain

A

Patterns of dark lines

110
Q

What is happening if the visible spectrum of light from stars is getting red-shifted

A

The star is moving away from us

111
Q

What does red-shifted mean

A

That the rays of light are being moved towards the red end of the spectrum

112
Q

The further the lines of light are shifted, the what?

A

The faster the star is moving relative to us

113
Q

What is red shift a measure of

A

How far along the spectrum the lines have moved

114
Q

What happens to visible spectrum of light from a star is the star is moving towards us

A

The wavelength and the frequency of the light waves become shorter, and move towards the blue side of the spectrum

115
Q

Who investigated Redshift

A

Edward Hubble

116
Q

In more detail, what did Edward Hubble investigate

A

How far the pattern of lines was shifted for around 50 galaxies in comparison to the sun

117
Q

What did Edward conclude

A

That all the galaxies were moving away from us as they were all red-shifted

118
Q

What did Edward also find out

A

That the further the galaxy was away from us, the greater the red-shift and so the faster it was moving away

119
Q

How do we interpret red-shift in terms of our universe

A

That the universe is expanding

Physics (11 decks)

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