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astronomy 101 > Final Exam > Flashcards

Final Exam Flashcards

1
Q

A star is 230 light years away. The light we see tonight from that star left it how long ago?

A

230 years

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2
Q

The point in the sky directly above your head at any given time is called what?

A

The zenith

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3
Q

The path that the sun appears to make in the sky over the course of a year is called what?

A

The ecliptic

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4
Q

The celestial sphere turns around once each day because…

A

The Earth is rotating

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5
Q

Describe the 5 terms involving the celestial sphere…

A

Your horizon
Zenith
North Celestial Pole
Earth’s equator
Celestial Equator

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6
Q

At Earth’s equator, you would see the celestial poles on your horizon. True or False.

A

True

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7
Q

In an ellipse, the ratio of the distance between the foci and the length of the major axis is called what?

A

Eccentricity

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8
Q

Describe newtons 3 laws and the law of universal gravitation.

A

1) Inertia
2) F=ma
3) Equal and opposite forces
4) two objects exert attractive forces

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9
Q

Describe Kepler’s three laws of planetary motion

A

1) all planetary orbits are ellipses
2) line segment sweeps equal areas
3) period^2 proportional to semimajor axis^3

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10
Q

Why do seasons happen

A

The tilt of the Earth

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11
Q

Give aspects of electromagnetic radiation

A

1) speed of light
2) all directions from objects that are not at 0K
3) different wavelengths and frequencies
4) produced when charge particles oscillate

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12
Q

Rank order of E&M waves in order of increasing wavelength

A

Radio waves
Microwaves
Infrared
Visible Light
Ultra Violet
X-ray
Gamma ray

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13
Q

Law that relates temperature and wavelength

A

Wein’s Law

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14
Q

Law that relates flux to frequency

A

Stefan-Boltzman Law

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15
Q

For electromagnetic waves, the frequency multiplied by the wavelength will be the same constant number. True or False

A

TRUE. the speed of light

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16
Q

What is a skywall

A

one of 88 regions that the sky is divided into

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17
Q

What is the big bear belt

A

an imaginary belt in the sky through which the Sun, Moon, and planets are seen to move in the course of the day and the course of a year.

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18
Q

What is a light year

A

The distance that light travels in 1 year

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19
Q

According to Kepler’s third law, there is a relationship between the time a planet takes to revolve around the Sun and the planet’s…

A

distance from the sun

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20
Q

To locate objects on Earth, we call the number of degrees east or west of the Greenwich Meridian its:

A

longitude

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21
Q

A solar day is slightly longer than a sidereal day. True or False

A

true

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22
Q

If an object is moving towards you at high speed, the lines on the absorption spectrum would be shifted which way?

A

To increasing frequency
To decreasing wavelength

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23
Q

What type of wavelengths are more difficult to see from the Earth’s surface

A

longer wavelengths because they have less energy to penetrate the atmosphere, infrared and lower.

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24
Q

what equations relates E&M wave speed, frequency, and wavelength.

A

frequency*wavelength=speed of light

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25
Q

What tool do astronomers use to break light into it’s different frequencies.

A

spectrometer

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26
Q

what type of telescopes can be used routinely on the surface of the Earth during the day?

A

Gamma Ray telescope

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27
Q

the most important function of an astronomical telescope is to…

A

Magnify celestial objects so we can see them clearly.

28
Q

The hottest zone in the sun is…

A

the core

29
Q

The most common element in the Sun is…

A

Hydrogen

30
Q

How does the sun rotate?

A

Different latitudes of the sun rotate at different speeds

31
Q

List the layers of the sun from inside to out.

A

Core
Radiative zone
Convective zone
Photosphere
Chromosphere
Corona

32
Q

What should you expect to see an increase in during solar maximum

A

1) The number of sunspots
2) The number of solar flares
3) Aurora on Earth

33
Q

List the types of stars in order of decreasing temperature

A

O B A F G K M

34
Q

Relationship between arcseconds and parcecs

A

1/arcseconds = parcecs

35
Q

equation that relates apparent brightness to magnitude scale

A

intensity ratio = 10^(0.4(∆m))

36
Q

What can we use to tell if a star is moving away from us?

A

the redshift of the spectral lines

37
Q

equation that relates apparent magnitude, luminosity, and distance

A

apparent - luminosity = 5log(distance/10parsec)

38
Q

What is interstellar matter?

A

gas and dust that lies between stars

39
Q

Difference between absorption and emission spectrum?

A

Absorption spectrum show the light that was absorbed, usually large amounts of light on the spectrum. Emission are the opposite.

40
Q

compare emission and reflection nebulae

A

reflection nebulae
- typically blue
- reflected light from emission nebulae

emission nebulae
- typically redder
- brighter

41
Q

What are HII zones

A

A zone around a hot star where hydrogen atoms are ionized

42
Q

Where does the red color that we see in photographs come from?

A

Hydrogen

43
Q

Why do stars spend most of their lives on the main sequence?

A

That is where they burn hydrogen, which is the most abundant material in stars

44
Q

Star cluster that contains old stars is…

A

Globular Cluster

45
Q

Why can a star with a mass like our Sun not fuse (produce) further elements beyond carbon and oxygen?

A

because such a star just cannot get hot enough for the fusion of heavier nuclei

46
Q

When a single star with a mass equal to the Sun dies, it will become a…

A

White dwarf

47
Q

If you want to find stars that are just being born, where are the best places to search?

A

In giant molecular clouds

48
Q

A star whose temperature is increasing but whose luminosity is roughly constant moves in what direction on the H-R diagram?

A

to the left

49
Q

Astronomers identify the “birth” of a real star (as opposed to the activities of a protostar) with what activity in the star?

A

Hydrogen Fusion

50
Q

As a star becomes a giant, its outer layers are expanding. Where does the energy for expanding these layers come from?

A

From the fusion of helium into carbon

51
Q

What type of galaxy is our Milky Way?

A

Spiral

52
Q

The type of galaxy that consists almost entirely of old stars and is thus less blue (more yellow and reddish) than the other types is:

A

elliptical

53
Q

Edwin Hubble developed a classification scheme for galaxies. By what characteristic did he classify galaxies?

A

Shape

54
Q

After several decades of observation, astronomers have concluded that quasars are…

A

Powerful and compact sources of energy at the centers of distant galaxies

55
Q

Today, astronomers find compelling evidence that the energy source of the quasars and active galaxies is…

A

matter falling toward a supermassive blackhole at the center of a galaxy

56
Q

Which of the following objects is considered useful to astronomers as a “standard candle” for determining distances?

A

Type 1A supernovae

57
Q

Edwin Hubble was able to show that (with the exception of our nearest neighbors) the farther a galaxy is from us, the…

A

faster it is moving away from us

58
Q

method of calculating Hubble’s constant

A

velocity/distance

59
Q

equation for redshift in terms of wavelength and frequency

A

z = ∆λ/λemitted = -∆v/vemitted

60
Q

equation for redshift in terms of the speed of light

A

z = √((1+(v/c))/(1-(v/c)))

61
Q

According to the Cosmological Principle, the universe

A

is isotropic and homogeneous

62
Q

Roughly how many galaxies make up our Local Group?

A

about 60

63
Q

Which type of galaxy is observed to contain mostly older stars?

A

elliptical

64
Q

In which type of galaxy are you likely to observe a significant amount of star formation?

A

irregular and spiral

65
Q

What does the hubble constant represent?

A

The rate that the universe is expanding

66
Q

When astronomers refer to “late-type” galaxies, what are they referring to specifically?

A

spiral

67
Q

When astronomers refer to “early-type” galaxies, what are they referring to specifically?

A

elliptical

astronomy 101 (1 decks)

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