Chapter 1&2 Flashcards

1
Q

What is the Universe?

A

The totality of everything in existence

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
2
Q

What do scientists do to test the validity of a hypothesis?

A

Conduct experiments and observations

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
3
Q

How is the number 500,000 written in scientific notation?

A

5x10 to the 5th

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
4
Q

What is a nanometer?

A

One billionth of a meter
Or
10 to the -9

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
5
Q

How many arc seconds are there in an angle of one degree?

A

3600
1* = 60’ (arc minutes)
1’ = 60” (arc seconds)

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
6
Q

Which represents the biggest distance:

1 pc, 1 AU, or 1 ly?

A

1 pc= 3.262 ly
1 ly = 6x10 to the 12th miles
1AU= 93x10 to the 6th miles

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
7
Q

Today, what is a pattern of bright stars called?

A

Asterism

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
8
Q

Why do we have seasonal stars?

A

Because of the Earths orbit around the Sun

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
9
Q

What causes the seasons we experience on the Earth?

A

The 23.5* tilt of the Earth’s rotation axis

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
10
Q

What type of day is the true rotation period of the Earth?

A

Sidereal Day

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
11
Q

If a star rises tonight at 11:00 pm, when will it rise tomorrow night?

A

10:56pm

Stars rise about 4 minutes earlier each night

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
12
Q

Where must you be on the Earth to have the north celestial pole at your zenith?

A

On the North Pole

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
13
Q

What is the ecliptic?

A

Earths orbital plain and the apparent path of the Sun

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
14
Q

What two celestial coordinates are used to specify the positions of objects in the sky

A

Declination and Right Ascension

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
15
Q

Why is Polaris not always the North Star for the Earth

A

The Earth’s rotation axis precesses

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
16
Q

What is retrograde motion for the planets

A

Motion backwards from normal motion

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
17
Q

As far as we know, who first accurately measured the size of the Earth

A

Eratosthenes

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
18
Q

What type of model was the one promoted by Copernicus

A

Heliocentric

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
19
Q

What was Tycho’s major contribution to astronomy

A

Accurate planetary positional data

20
Q

According to Kepler’s laws, where is the Sun located in a planet’s orbit

A

At one focus of the ellipse

21
Q

What is meant by inertia

A

Tendency for constant velocity motion

22
Q

What did Galileo prove by observing Venus and Jupiter through his telescope

A

The Earth is not the center of all motion (the geocentric model is wrong)

23
Q

What is Newton’s second law of motion

A

Force equals mass times acceleration, F=ma

24
Q

Why do objects weigh more on Earth than they do on the Moon

A

The Earth is much more massive than the moon

25
What is Earth doing at this very moment
Freefalling into the Sun
26
According to Newton, light behaves as if it is made of what
Particles (colored)
27
According to Young, light seems to act like what
A wave (of some unknown type)
28
Did Maxwell confirm Young's result? If so, according to Maxwell what is light
Yes- light is an electromagnetic wave
29
According to Einstein, energy within light comes in the form of what (and its name)
Particles (photons)
30
Today, what do physicists state about the nature of light
Light has a "wave-particle duality" of nature (it shows both aspects)
31
Which has a longer wavelength: violet light or red light? Which has more energy
Red light has a longer wavelength (and less energy) than violet light
32
Which differs greatly from others: x-rays, radio waves, sound waves, visible light
Sound waves (all of the others are light)
33
You want to observe the x-rays that an object emits. Where is your telescope located
In space (above the Earth's atmosphere)
34
Sirius is white, Betelgeuse is red, and Spica is blue. List these stars from hottest to coolest
Spica (blue) is the hottest, then Sirius, and the Betelgeuse (red) is the coolest
35
What do astronomers use to determine the chemical composition of the stars
Spectroscopy (spectral analysis)
36
A very hot, dense, glowing object produces what type of spectrum
Continuous
37
A warm glowing cloud produces what type of spectrum
Emission
38
The Sun (and other stars) produces which type of spectrum
Absorption
39
Are normal atoms overall positively, negatively, or neutrally charged
Normal atoms are always neutrally charged
40
According to Rutherford's results, the nucleus of the atom is what (three answers)
Small, massive and positively charged
41
Within the atom, where are neutrons and protons located
The nucleus (center)
42
When atoms absorb photons, the electrons can move to (-------) orbits
Higher
43
When electrons move to (-----) orbits, atoms emit photons
Lower
44
What transitions of the electron within the hydrogen atom result in the Balmer series
The second and all the higher orbits
45
The spectrum of the light from a star exhibits a blue shift. What does this mean
It's moving towards us
46
The wavelength of the hydrogen alpha line is 656.28 nm. In a stars spectrum, this line is observed at a wavelength of 657.28. Is the star moving towards or away from us? How do u immediately know?
It is moving away from us, its wavelength is now longer, or a red shift