General Astronomy Chapters 1-6

Question 1

What is Astronomy?

Answer 1

Study of objects beyond earths atmosphere

Question 2

What is science?

Answer 2

The method by which we UNDERSTAND how things work

Question 3

Proving hypothesis true

Answer 3

An infinite amount of experiments

Question 4

proving hypothesis false

Answer 4

it takes one experiment

Question 5

Distance in Astronomy

Answer 5

kilometers
astronomical units
light years
parsecs

Question 6

Scientific notation

Answer 6

Count zeros

Question 7

Constellations

Answer 7

The patch of sky that gets the name, rather than the stars themselves

Question 8

Asterism

Answer 8

A subset of stars that form a widely recognized shape

Question 9

Celestial Sphere

Answer 9

Assumes all stars no matter the distance are projected onto a sphere around the earth

Question 10

Horizon

Answer 10

Where the dome of the sky you can see meets the ground from your point of view

Question 11

Zenith

Answer 11

The point above your head

Question 12

Nadir

Answer 12

The point below your feet

Question 13

Celestial equator

Answer 13

The projection of the earth’s equator into space

Question 14

North celestial pole

Answer 14

The projection of the earth’s geographic north point into space

Question 15

South celestial pole

Answer 15

The projection of the earth’s geographic south point into space

Question 16

Altitude

Answer 16

The angle height of the north star (polaris) above the horizon

Question 17

Sky at the north pole?

Answer 17

North star will appear to not move because it is center of earths axis

Question 18

Archaeastronomy

Answer 18

The study of how people in the past understood the phenomena in the sky and the role it played in their cultures

Question 19

Origin of oldest written constellations

Answer 19

Ancient Egyptian hyroglyphics

Question 20

Astrology

Answer 20

A pseudoscience

Question 21

Principles of science

Answer 21

Requires testing and verifiable ideas

Question 22

Why did Aristotle believe the earth was round?

Answer 22

1. the circular shadow of earth during a lunar eclipse
2. if you change your location on earth you see different stars

Question 23

How did ancient greeks know the approximate size of the earth?

Answer 23

Eratosthenes used geometry and trigonometry to find the earth’s radius.

Question 24

Who discovered earth’s tilt?

Answer 24

Hipparchus by cataloging stars and their brightness

Question 25

Ptolemy's model/Geocentric model

Answer 25

The earth is the most important, therefore the center of everything...WRONG

Question 26

Nicolaus Copernicus

Answer 26

Developed heliocentric idea and hypothesized that the earth orbits the sun in a uniform circular motion

Question 27

Biggest challenge Galileo faced?

Answer 27

1. being able to articulate novel scientific discoveries that conflict with political and religious doctrine 2. getting funding for research

Question 28

Father of modern science

Answer 28

Galileo Galilei developed observation. based science rather than authority-based science

Question 29

When was the telescope invested?

Answer 29

1608 in Holland and design was improved by Galileo

Question 30

Tycho Brahe

Answer 30

Surveyed the sky without a telescope, did not include difficult mathematical analysis of observations

Question 31

Johannes Kepler

Answer 31

Assistant to Tycho Brahe, developed 3 basic laws of planetary motion

Question 32

Kepler's laws of planetary motion

Answer 32

Law 1: each planet moves around the sun in an ellipse Law 2: planets sweep out equal areas in equal times Law 3: P^3=a^2

Question 33

Issac Newton's Universal law of gravity

Answer 33

gravitational force = m1*m2/r^2

Question 34

Acceleration of gravity

Answer 34

the acceleration of earth, moon, etc. does not depend on mass

Question 35

Latitude

Answer 35

Measured in degrees with a zero point at the equator

Question 36

Longitude

Answer 36

Measured in degrees or time

Question 37

Declination and Right Ascension

Answer 37

correspond to longitude and latitude and given a position of an object in the sky instead of location on earth

Question 38

Solar day vs. Sideral day

Answer 38

4 min difference between movement of sun and stars

Question 39

Solar day

Answer 39

one rotation of earth based on sun

Question 40

Sideral day

Answer 40

one rotation based with respect to stars

Question 41

one day

Answer 41

based on the ratio of the earth

Question 42

one month

Answer 42

based on the moon's orbit around earth

Question 43

one year

Answer 43

based on earth's orbit around the sun

Question 44

Heelstone

Answer 44

different stones that align with summer and winter sunrise and set which create shadows

Question 45

summer solstice

Answer 45

earth's tilt is facing the sun

Question 46

winter solstice

Answer 46

earth's tilt is away from the sun

Question 47

Equinox

Answer 47

when daylight and night light are exactly 12 hours

Question 48

Tidal Locking

Answer 48

the moon spins on its own axis one for each orbit around the earth so we always see the same side of the moon

Question 49

when are ocean tides strongest?

Answer 49

full mood

Question 50

when are ocean tides weakest

Answer 50

quarter moon

Question 51

Light

Answer 51

can be a particle or a wave

Question 52

wavelength

Answer 52

distance between two like points of a wave

Question 53

frequency

Answer 53

a count of the number of waves passing through a point

Question 54

speed of light

Answer 54

the physical speed when waves pass through a vacuum = frequency * wavelength

Question 55

photon

Answer 55

particle of light

Question 56

the energy of a photon

Answer 56

constant/h*speed of light/c divided by wavelength

Question 57

blackbody radiation

Answer 57

red glow of radiating heat

Question 58

The Doppler effect

Answer 58

speed of an object is related to the amount of shift in wavelength of light we receive from it

Question 59

Why are telescopes needed?

Answer 59

earths atmosphere hold certain gases and dust that block certain forms of light

Question 60

Refracting telescope

Answer 60

bending of path of light bean as it passes from one material to another

Question 61

reflecting telescope

Answer 61

uses single lens

Question 62

light gathering power of telescopes

Answer 62

based on the aperture (diameter) of the opening that collects light

Question 63

resolving power of telescopes

Answer 63

based on the wavelength of light and the diameter of the telescope

Question 64

magnifying power of telescopes

Answer 64

enlarge images