The basics (Lecture 1)

Question 1

What is an Astronomical Unit (AU)

Answer 1

8 light minutes: The distance between the Sun and the earth

Question 2

How far away is Jupiter in AU?

Answer 2

5 AU

Question 3

How far away is Neptune in AU? (Outer solar system)

Answer 3

30 AU

Question 4

What is the nearest star?

Answer 4

Centauri - 4.37 Light years

Question 5

TASK: Review diagram

Answer 5

Diagram reviewed

Question 6

What is the galactic plane?

Answer 6

Plane or cross-section of space where most of the mass of any disk-shaped galaxy lies

Question 7

What is different about the sky below the equator?

Answer 7

Moon & Constellations appear upside down & inverted left/right

Question 8

What is the diameter of the milky way

Answer 8

100,000 Light years

Question 9

What is the diameter of the sun

Answer 9

1,500,000 kilometers/0.5 light seconds

Question 10

What is 10,000 kilometers equal to?

Answer 10

The distance from the equator to a pole of the earth (1/4 the circumference)

Question 11

What is the circumference of the earth?

Answer 11

40,000 km

Question 12

What is the diameter of the earth?

Answer 12

15,000 km

Question 13

What was the big thing discovered (on accident) in New Jersey?

Answer 13

The cosmic microwave backround (background radiation from the big bang)

Question 14

What is the age of the universe?

Answer 14

13.77 Billion years

Question 15

What happens to the light from a star the farther away you get?

Answer 15

Light spreads out over a larger area and brightness dims

Question 16

What is the equation for the brightness of a star?

Answer 16

1/d^2

Question 17

How do you find the celestial pole?

Question 18

How fast is the Earth moving at the equator?

Answer 18

1670 km/hour

Question 19

What is the “morning star” and “evening star”

Answer 19

Venus

Question 20

What is Right Hand Rotation

Answer 20

The idea of something rotating or orbiting in the same direction that your fingers curl from your thumb on your right hand

Question 21

Which Two planets orbit/rotate differently from the rest of the solar system

Answer 21

Uranus and Venus

Question 22

Where in the Milky Way are we?

Answer 22

2/3 of the way out

Question 23

What is the closest Galaxy?

Answer 23

Andromeda

Question 24

What is the name of our group of galaxies?

Answer 24

Virgo Supercluster

Question 25

What is the length of the Virgo supercluster?

Answer 25

100,000,000 light-years

Question 26

What is the ecliptic (path)

Answer 26

The path of the sun and all the stars in the sky (tilted in relation to the earth because of earth's axis tilt)

Question 27

Where are the zodiac constellations?

Answer 27

In the ecliptic path (create a "year's" worth of constellations correlating to the 12 months)

Question 28

Where is the Orion omission nebula

Question 29

Why does the Orion omission nebula have such stark lines?

Answer 29

Because it is a hot glowing hydrogen cloud

Question 30

What is the red balmer line

Question 31

Why is Betelgeuse red?

Answer 31

Because it is very cold (red giant)

Question 32

TASK: review diagram of stars and such

Question 33

What is Sirius?

Answer 33

The Brightest star in the sky

Question 34

What is the tilt of the Earth's axis?

Answer 34

23 degrees

Question 35

How do you tell whether a phase is waxing or waning?

Answer 35

Right to left; right is bigger left is getting smaller.

Question 36

What causes earth's seasons

Answer 36

Axis tilt & rotation around the sun

Question 37

What is happening during an equinox

Answer 37

The axis points in the direction of the sun

Question 38

Explain angular size

Answer 38

Small piece of a pie, something is smaller farther away

Question 39

Define Longitude, Latitude, Prime meridian, and Equator

Answer 39

Longitude - Vertical lines (vertical position) Latitude - Horizontal lines (horizontal position) Equator - medial/longest Latitudinal line Prime meridian - Longest/medial longitudinal line

Question 40

PARALLAX

Answer 40

Measuring distance with right triangle trigonometry

Question 41

How long is the lunar (phase) cycle

Answer 41

29.5 days (LUNAR MONTH)

Question 42

How long does it take for the moon to orbit the Earth?

Answer 42

27 days

Question 43

What is a sidereal month?

Answer 43

Month based on the time it takes for the moon to orbit the earth (27 days)

Question 44

Explain eclipses- What causes them?

Answer 44

The earth and moon lining up wiht relation to the sun Solar eclipse, moon directly between sun and earth Lunar eclipse - earth casts a direct shadow on the moon

Question 45

Why do we not have eclipses every month?

Answer 45

Due to the earth's tilt on its axis and the moons slanted rotation

Question 46

Explain Opposition, Conjunction, and inferior/superior conjunction

Answer 46

Opposition - the object is behind the earth Conjunction/superior conjunction (for inner planets only) - the object is in line on the front side, behind the sun but in front of the earth Inferior conjunction - object is on front side of earth but between earth and sun (inner planets only) SEE DIAGRAM

Question 47

When do planets go into their retrograde loop?

Answer 47

At opposition

Question 48

Explain retrograde/retrograde loop

Answer 48

The brief period of time when an object/planet that is going at a slower speed to Earth appears to go backwards fin the sky as the earth catches up & passes it. The loop represents the observed faltering position in the sky.