MULTIPLE CHOICE.

Choose the one alternative that best completes the statement or answers the
question.

1) The distances to other stars beyond the Sun are measured in:
A) kilometers.
B) astronomical units.
C) light days.
D) light months.
E) light years.
Answer: E
Diff: 1 Page Ref: 1.1N

2) Modern scientific theories are NOT:

A) testable.
B) continuously tested.
C) simple.
D) perfect.
E) elegant.
Answer: D
Diff: 1 Page Ref: 1.2N

3) The greek scientist who applied the scientific method to lunar eclipses was:
A) Aristotle.
B) Aristarchus.
C) Erastothenes.
D) Archimedes.
E) Pythagoras.
Answer: A
Diff: 2 Page Ref: 1.2N

4) Aristotle's hypothesis was that:

A) lunar eclipses were created by our shadow.
B) only a spherical Earth would always cast a circular shadow on the Moon.
C) lunar eclipses would have to happen every full moon.
D) the Sun lay at the center of the planet orbits.
E) the Moon orbited the Earth.
Answer: B
Diff: 2 Page Ref: 1.2N

5) Where on Earth can you observe all the stars in the sky over an entire year?
A) North Pole
B) Arctic Circle
C) Tropic of Cancer
D) Equator
E) Everyone on Earth can see the whole sky.
Answer: D
Diff: 2 Page Ref: 1.3R

6) What celestial line is a product of the Earth's rotation?

A) Ecliptic
B) Prime Meridian
C) Equator
D) Galactic Plane
E) Analemma
Answer: C
7) What line in the sky is created by our revolution around the Sun?
A) Equator
B) Ecliptic
C) Prime Meridian
D) Analemma
E) Galactic Plane
Answer: B
Diff: 1 Page Ref: 1.4R

8) What is the range of values for declination?

A) +90 to -90 degrees
B) +180 to -180 degrees
C) +23.5 to -23.5 degrees
D) 0 to 24 hours
E) Correct answer is not given.
Answer: A
Diff: 1 Page Ref: 1.4R

9) What is the range of values for Right Ascension?

A) 90 degrees to 0 degrees
B) 0 to 360 degrees
C) +23.5 to -23.5 degrees
D) 0 to 12 hours
E) 0 to 24 hours
Answer: E
Diff: 1 Page Ref: 1.4R

10) The place the Sun stops its northward motion along the ecliptic is the:
A) equator.
B) prime meridian.
C) summer solstice.
D) vernal equinox.
E) node of the ecliptic.
Answer: C
Diff: 1 Page Ref: 1.4R

11) The places where the Sun crosses the equator are called the:
A) annelemmas.
B) prime meridians.
C) zeniths.
D) equinoxes.
E) solstices.
Answer: D
Diff: 1 Page Ref: 1.4R

12) Which statement about the day is FALSE?

A) The sidereal day is based on the Earth's rotation alone.
B) The solar day is based on consecutive noon transits of the Sun.
C) Normal timekeeping is based on the solar day.
D) The sidereal day is four minutes longer due to our revolution around the Sun.
E) Relative to the stars, the Earth spins in 23 hours, 56 minutes.
Answer: D
Diff: 3 Page Ref: 1.5R
13) Why is there a two day difference in the sidereal and synodic months?
A) The Moon speeds up at perigee, and slows down at apogee.
B) The sidereal day is four minutes shorter than the solar day, and it adds up.
C) The Earth is closer to the Sun during the sidereal month.
D) The Earth is also revolving around the Sun, so the Moon must "catch up".
E) The Moslem lunar year is only 354 days long, on average.
Answer: D
Diff: 2 Page Ref: 1.6R

14) Which statement about the first quarter moon is FALSE?

A) It rises about noon.
B) From the Earth, it appears 25% sunlit.
C) It is the half moon of the evening sky.
D) It is highest in the sky at sunset.
E) It occurs about a week after new moon.
Answer: B
Diff: 2 Page Ref: 1.6R

15) Which of the following describes parallax?

A) It is best measured over exactly one year intervals.
B) It is inversely proportional to the distance to the star.
C) It was first observed by Galileo with his new telescope.
D) It is only applicable to objects within the solar system.
E) It is more accurate as the distances to objects becomes greater.
Answer: B
Diff: 3 Page Ref: 1.7R

16) The Earth's circumference was first determined by:

A) Aristotle using lunar eclipses.
B) Pythagoras with geometry.
C) Hipparchus with stellar parallaxes.
D) Erastothenes with solstice shadows.
E) Aristarchus with first and third quarter moon timings.
Answer: D
Diff: 2 Page Ref: 1.7R

17) The most famous prehistoric astronomical observatory is:

A) the Sphinx.
B) Stonehenge.
C) Big Horn stone circle.
D) Carcacol.
E) Mount Rushmore.
Answer: B
Diff: 1 Page Ref: 2.1N

18) The principal culture that transferred Greek astronomical knowledge to Renaissance Europe was:
A) Byzantine.
B) Chinese.
C) Mongol.
D) Islamic.
E) Mayan.
Answer: D
Diff: 1 Page Ref: 2.2N
19) The Ptolemaic model of the universe:
A) explained and predicted the motions of the planets with deferents and epicycles.
B) is the basis of our modern cosmology.
C) could not account for the stellar parallax observed by Hipparchus.
D) describes the orbits of the planets as being ellipses, not circles.
E) always kept Mars and Mercury between the Earth and Sun.
Answer: A
Diff: 2 Page Ref: 2.2R

20) Which of these was NOT a part of Ptolemy's model?

A) Mercury must always lie between the Earth and Sun.
B) It was geocentric.
C) Eastward motion of the planet was along the deferent.
D) Retrograde motion of the planet utilized the epicycle.
E) Both Venus and Jupiter would be brightest at opposition.
Answer: E
Diff: 3 Page Ref: 2.2R

21) The greatest contribution of the Greeks to modern thought was:

A) the idea that all the planets orbited the Sun.
B) that their mythology was the basis for the naming of the constellations.
C) that their observation of stellar parallax proved the Earth orbited the Sun.
D) the development of scientific inquiry and model building.
E) the invention of the telescope.
Answer: D
Diff: 1 Page Ref: 2.2R

22) Scientists today do not accept the Ptolemaic model because:

A) it is ancient history.
B) it was too complicated, compared to Copernicus' heliocentric model.
C) it has been shown that Ptolemy faked his data.
D) it had no explanation for retrograde motion.
E) the work of Tycho and Kepler showed the heliocentric model was more accurate.
Answer: E
Diff: 1 Page Ref: 2.3R

23) Which of the statements below is part of both the Ptolemaic and Copernican models?
A) The Earth orbits the Sun once a year.
B) The Sun lies in the center of the Cosmos.
C) The Moon orbits the Earth once a month.
D) Epicycles are needed to explain retrograde motion of the planets.
E) Venus' epicycle must always lie between us and the Sun.
Answer: C
Diff: 3 Page Ref: 2.3R

24) Which was a contribution to astronomy made by Copernicus?

A) The planets move around the Sun in elliptical orbits.
B) His theory of gravity accounted for the variable speeds of the planets.
C) He laid out the order and relative motion of the known solar system.
D) He discovered the Sun was not at the center of the Milky Way.
E) His telescope revealed the four moons of Jupiter, a model solar system.
Answer: C
Diff: 2 Page Ref: 2.3R

25) On which of these assumptions do Ptolemy and Copernicus agree?

A) The Earth must be the center of all motion in the Cosmos.
B) All orbits must be perfect circles.
C) The Sun was bigger than the Earth.
D) Venus must always stay between us and the Sun.
E) The Sun must orbit us, but the planets do orbit the Sun.
Answer: B
Diff: 1 Page Ref: 2.3R

26) Which of these was NOT a part of the original Copernican model?
A) The Sun lies at the center of the solar system.
B) Mercury must move faster in its orbit than any other planet.
C) The Earth rotates on its axis once a day.
D) Venus can go all the way around the Sun.
E) Mercury will speed up at perihelion, and slow down at aphelion.
Answer: E
Diff: 3 Page Ref: 2.3R

27) Which of the following was NOT a contribution of Galileo to astronomy?

A) Sunspots showed the Sun was rotating on its axis, like the Earth does.
B) The four moons of Jupiter are a model for the solar system motions in general.
C) The phases of Venus prove it orbits completely around the Sun.
D) The changing appearance of Saturn's rings corresponds to our seasons.
E) The craters and mare of the Moon prove it a world in its own right.
Answer: D
Diff: 2 Page Ref: 2.4R

28) Which of the following is a contribution to astronomy made by Galileo?

A) The astronomical telescope can show us far more detail than the eye can.
B) Jupiter has four moons orbiting it.
C) The Moon has craters, mountain, valleys, and dark flat areas on its surface.
D) Venus appears almost fully lit when it lies on the far side of the Sun.
E) All of the above are his discoveries.
Answer: E
Diff: 2 Page Ref: 2.4N

29) Which of these was not seen telescopically by Galileo?

A) sunspots
B) Venus' phase cycle
C) Four moons around Jupiter
D) stellar parallax
E) Craters and mare on the Moon
Answer: D
Diff: 1 Page Ref: 2.4R

30) Which concept was NOT a part of Kepler's Laws of Planetary Motion?
A) All planetary orbits are ellipses.
B) The square of the planet's period is equal to the cube of its average distance.
C) A planet must move fastest in its orbit at perihelion.
D) Epicycles are needed to explain the varying brightnesses of the planets.
E) The line that connects the Sun to Mercury sweeps out the same area in a month as does the line
connecting us to the Sun.
Answer: D
Diff: 2 Page Ref: 2.5R

31) According to Kepler's third law, the square of the planet's period in years is:
A) equal to its perihelion distance from the Sun in A.U.
B) inversely proportional to its mass in kilograms.
C) equal to the fourth power of its average temperature in degrees Kelvin.
D) proportional to the cube of its semimajor axis in A.U.
E) equal to the square of its aphelion distance in A.U.
Answer: D
Diff: 2 Page Ref: 2.5N

32) What contribution to astronomy was made by Tycho Brahe?

A) The planets' orbits around the Sun are ellipses, not circles.
B) The Earth is not the center of the Universe.
C) His observations of planetary motion with great accuracy proved circular orbits could not work.
D) His telescope revealed the moons of Jupiter before Galileo noted them.
E) Retrograde motion must be explained by epicycles larger than those of Ptolemy.
Answer: C
Diff: 2 Page Ref: 2.5R

33) During the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries, attempts to precisely measure the astronomical unit
relied largely on rare:
A) total solar eclipses.
B) transits of the inferior planets across the Sun.
C) passages of comets close to the Earth.
D) maximum elongations of Venus.
E) oppositions of Mars.
Answer: B
Diff: 2 Page Ref: 2.6N

34) Today we rely largely on what technique to precisely measure distances in the solar system?
A) transits of Venus across the Sun
B) radar echo timings
C) measurement of stellar parallaxes.
D) timings of the eclipses of its moons by Jupiter's shadow
E) precise measurements of length of the year with atomic clocks
Answer: B
Diff: 2 Page Ref: 2.6N

35) The Law of Universal Gravitation was developed by:

A) Kepler.
B) Galileo.
C) Newton.
D) Copernicus.
E) Einstein.
Answer: C
Diff: 1 Page Ref: 2.7N

36) Which of these was a contribution of Newton to astronomy?

A) Artificial satellites could be put into orbit about the Earth.
B) The Sun's gravity is greatest on a planet at perihelion, so the planet must speed up.
C) The Moon pulls as strongly on us as we do on it.
D) His differential calculus lets us calculate planetary motions more accurately.
E) All of these were due to Newton's work.
Answer: E
Diff: 2 Page Ref: 2.7N
37) The force of gravity between two objects:
A) increases with the masses of the bodies, but decreases with their separations.
B) increases with the masses of the bodies, but decreases with the square of the distances between them.
C) increases with the square of their masses, but decreases with the cube of their periods of orbit about the
Sun.
D) depends on the density, not the mass of the bodies.
E) depends on the temperature, density, and size of the bodies.
Answer: B
Diff: 1 Page Ref: 2.7R

38) Combining Newton's and Kepler's laws, we can weigh the Sun, provided we know:
A) its density as found by spectroscopy.
B) its temperature as found by Wien's Law.
C) the size of the A.U. and exact length of the year.
D) the Earth's mass and circumference.
E) the exact timings of the transits of Venus and its diameter.
Answer: C
Diff: 3 Page Ref: 2.7R

39) The distance between successive wave crests defines the ________ of a wave.
A) wavelength
B) frequency
C) period
D) amplitude
E) energy
Answer: A
Diff: 1 Page Ref: 3.1N

40) Which of these is constant for all types of electromagnetic radiation in space?
A) amplitude
B) energy
C) speed
D) frequency
E) wavelength
Answer: C
Diff: 1 Page Ref: 3.2R

41) Light waves differ fundamentally from water or sound waves because:
A) they do not require a material medium for transmission.
B) they have many different wavelengths.
C) they all have the same energy.
D) they can only travel at one speed, regardless of the medium.
E) the energy of all light waves is constant.
Answer: A
Diff: 2 Page Ref: 3.2R

42) Which of these forms of EM radiation is typical of sources millions of degrees hot?
A) visible light
B) X-rays
C) ultraviolet
D) infrared
E) radio
Answer: B
Diff: 1 Page Ref: 3.3R
43) Which form of EM radiation is absorbed by carbon dioxide and water vapor in our atmosphere?
A) visible light
B) ultraviolet
C) infrared
D) radio
E) gamma rays
Answer: C
Diff: 1 Page Ref: 3.3R

44) Which form of EM radiation would be blocked in the stratosphere by ozone?

A) cosmic rays
B) ultraviolet
C) visible light
D) infrared
E) microwaves
Answer: B
Diff: 1 Page Ref: 3.3R

45) Of all EM waves, the ones carrying the least energy per photon are:
A) gamma rays.
B) ultraviolet rays.
C) visible light.
D) microwaves.
E) radio waves.
Answer: E
Diff: 1 Page Ref: 3.3R

46) The Earth's ionosphere partially blocks which form of radiation?

A) gamma rays
B) ultraviolet
C) visible light
D) infrared
E) radio
Answer: E
Diff: 1 Page Ref: 3.3R

47) High energy astronomers are especially interested in:

A) hydrogen alpha light.
B) radio waves of 21 cm wavelength.
C) ultraviolet light around 100-300 nm. wavelength.
D) X-rays and gamma rays.
E) all forms of radiation.
Answer: D
Diff: 2 Page Ref: 3.3R

48) Colors appear different to us because of their photons' different:

A) speeds.
B) amplitudes.
C) wavelengths.
D) magnetic fields.
E) polarization.
Answer: C
Diff: 2 Page Ref: 3.3R

49) The two forms of EM radiation that penetrate the atmosphere best are:
A) X-rays and gamma rays.
B) ultraviolet and visible light.
C) visible and infrared light.
D) visible and radio waves.
E) infrared and microwaves.
Answer: D
Diff: 1 Page Ref: 3.3R

50) As the Sun evolves into a red giant in the distant future, then according to Wien's Law:
A) most of its energy must become shorter in wavelength.
B) its peak on the Planck curve will move into the infrared.
C) its total luminosity must decrease.
D) it will disappear from the universe of visible light.
E) its light will be slowed down by its increasing mass.
Answer: B
Diff: 3 Page Ref: 3.4R

51) At which of these Kelvin temperatures is water a liquid?

A) 3 K
B) 30 K
C) 300 K
D) 3000 K
E) 30,000 K
Answer: C
Diff: 1 Page Ref: 3.4R

52) At which of these Kelvin temperatures would a blackbody create chiefly visible light?
A) 6 K
B) 60 K
C) 600 K
D) 6000 K
E) None of them; blackbodies are by definition at absolute zero.
Answer: D
Diff: 2 Page Ref: 3.4N

53) The frequency at which a block body's intensity peaks depends directly on its:
A) radius.
B) mass.
C) magnetic fields.
D) temperature.
E) direction of motion.
Answer: D
Diff: 2 Page Ref: 3.4R

54) If the star Aldeberan has a peak wavelength of about 700 nm, then its surface temperature is about:
A) 40 K
B) 400 K
C) 4000 K
D) 40,000 K
E) 400,000 K
Answer: C
Diff: 2 Page Ref: 3.4R

55) The relationship that states that doubling a star's surface temperature will halve its peak wavelength is
known as:
A) the Copernican Principle.
B) Wien's Law.
C) Stefan's Law.
D) Kirchoff's Second Law.
E) Hubble's Law.
Answer: B
Diff: 1 Page Ref: 3.4R

56) Radial motion can be revealed by spectroscopic analysis using the:

A) the Photoelectric Effect.
B) Newtonian Relativity.
C) the Doppler Effect.
D) Gravitational Redshift.
E) Stefan's Law.
Answer: C
Diff: 1 Page Ref: 3.5N

57) What is spectroscopy?

A) an analysis of the way in which atoms absorb and emit light
B) a study of the geometry of rainbows
C) an observational technique to measure the brightness of light at different colors
D) the use of CCDs to capture light more efficiently than with photographic film
E) a method to freeze atmospheric turbulence for better resolution
Answer: A
Diff: 1 Page Ref: 4.1R

58) An incandescent light (glowing tungsten filament) produces:

A) a continuous spectrum, with the peak giving the temperature of the filament.
B) an emission spectrum, with bright lines due to ionized tungsten.
C) an absorption spectrum, with dark lines due to the solid filament.
D) a continuum, with bright tungsten lines added.
E) a continuum, with dark lines of tungsten and argon as well.
Answer: A
Diff: 2 Page Ref: 4.1R

59) A neon light (thin hot neon gas in a sealed tube) gives us:
A) a continuous spectrum, since the neon is hot enough to glow.
B) a few bright emission lines, telling us the gas is neon.
C) a continuum, with dark lines identifying the neon atoms are present.
D) a lot of random bright red lines due to the motion of the hot atoms.
E) nothing visible to us, but a hot of infrared lines as heat.
Answer: B
Diff: 2 Page Ref: 4.1R

60) What discovery resulted from the photoelectric effect?

A) the wave nature of light
B) the polarization of light waves
C) the quantization of the atomic orbitals
D) the particle nature of the photon
E) the process of ionization
Answer: D
Diff: 3 Page Ref: 4.2R

61) The most abundant hydrogen isotope consists of:

A) a proton and a neutron.
B) a proton and an electron.
C) a proton, neutron, and an electron.
D) a neutron and an electron.
E) two protons, two neutrons, and two electrons.
Answer: B
Diff: 1 Page Ref: 4.2R

62) Which of these is emitted from an atom when one of its electrons makes a transition from a higher to
lower energy state?
A) proton
B) neutron
C) photon
D) positron
E) neutrino
Answer: C
Diff: 1 Page Ref: 4.2R

63) The quantized nature of the atom's energy requires that light:
A) behaves like a wave.
B) behaves like a particle.
C) has an infinite speed.
D) has different speeds as the medium changes.
E) has both electrical and magnetic fields.
Answer: B
Diff: 1 Page Ref: 4.2R

64) Einstein's Nobel Prize in Physics was actually awarded for his:
A) Special Theory of relativity.
B) General Theory of Relativity.
C) work on the photoelectric effect and the nature of electron orbitals.
D) work on the Manhattan Project and the atomic bomb.
E) discovery of the expansion of the universe.
Answer: C
Diff: 3 Page Ref: 4.2N

65) Why are molecular lines more complex than elemental spectral lines?
A) Molecules have two or more atoms.
B) Molecules can vibrate and rotate as well.
C) Molecules are heavier than atoms.
D) Molecules are the basis of life.
E) Most of the universe is made of molecules, not individual atoms.
Answer: B
Diff: 2 Page Ref: 4.3N

66) The splitting of spectral lines in the presence of strong magnetic fields is the:
A) Doppler Effect.
B) Second Law of Kirchoff.
C) Zeeman Effect.
D) Photoelectric Effect.
E) polarization of sunlight.
Answer: C
Diff: 2 Page Ref: 4.4N
67) The broadening of spectral lines can be caused by:
A) density of the hot medium.
B) thermal motion of the hot atoms.
C) rotation of the star.
D) magnetic fields of the star.
E) all of the above.
Answer: E
Diff: 2 Page Ref: 4.4R

68) Why are most large telescopes reflectors, not refractors?

A) Large lenses deform under their own weight, but mirrors can be supported.
B) Large mirrors need only one optical surface, achromats four surfaces to grind.
C) Reflectors do not suffer from chromatic aberration like refractors do.
D) Large, very clear lenses are harder to cast than more tolerant mirror blanks.
E) All of the above are correct.
Answer: E
Diff: 2 Page Ref: 5.1R

69) Which design is subject to chromatic aberration?

A) refractor
B) prime focus reflector
C) Newtonian reflector
D) Cassegrain reflector
E) Gregorian reflector
Answer: A
Diff: 1 Page Ref: 5.1R

70) Which design has a convex primary mirror and flat secondary mirror, with the eyepiece located on the
top side of the telescope tube?
A) refractor
B) Newtonian reflector
C) Cassegrain reflector
D) prime focus reflector
E) interferometer
Answer: B
Diff: 2 Page Ref: 5.1R

71) This design involves only one optical surface, a concave mirror.
A) prime focus reflector
B) Newtonian reflector
C) Cassegrain reflector
D) Gregorian reflector
E) refractor
Answer: A
Diff: 1 Page Ref: 5.1N
72) Which of these does NOT happen when light enters a glass lens?
A) Some of the light is absorbed.
B) The direction of the light ray is changed.
C) The photons of different energies are slowed down to different speeds.
D) Some of the light is reflected off the front surface of the lens.
E) Photons of different energies are focused at one common focus.
Answer: E
Diff: 3 Page Ref: 5.1N

73) The tendency of a wave to bend as it passes from one transparent medium to another is called:
A) reflection.
B) dispersion.
C) refraction.
D) diffraction.
E) interference.
Answer: C
Diff: 1 Page Ref: 5.1R

74) The process occurring when photons bounce off a polished surface is called:
A) diffraction.
B) refraction.
C) reflection.
D) dispersion.
E) interference.
Answer: C
Diff: 1 Page Ref: 5.1N

75) The instrument that analyzes the colors and temperatures of stars best is a:
A) photometer.
B) interferometer.
C) spectrometer.
D) barometer.
E) CCD imager.
Answer: C
Diff: 2 Page Ref: 5.2N

76) What is the resolving power of the telescope?

A) the ability to make distant objects appear closer
B) the ability to collect a lot of light
C) the ability to detect very faint objects
D) the ability to distinguish adjacent objects in the sky
E) the ability to separate light into its component colors
Answer: D
Diff: 1 Page Ref: 5.3R

77) The amount of diffraction depends upon:

A) the design of the telescope.
B) the wavelength and the diameter of the telescope objective.
C) the magnification of the eyepiece.
D) the types of glass used in the achromat.
E) the transparency of the atmosphere.
Answer: B
Diff: 3 Page Ref: 5.3R
78) What problem is adaptive optics designed to correct?
A) the opacity of the Earth's atmosphere
B) defects in the optical figuring, such as with the adaptive optics on HST
C) slight tracking errors in trying to compensate for our unsteady rotation
D) the effects of atmospheric turbulence
E) the absorption of ultraviolet by the ozone layer
Answer: D
Diff: 2 Page Ref: 5.4R

79) Which of the following is a problem inherent in all large radio telescopes?
A) They are badly affected by poor seeing and atmospheric turbulence.
B) The lightest breeze shakes them, making the observations blurry.
C) Their waves are blocked by water vapor, so they must be located in deserts.
D) Radio waves have long wavelengths, so radio telescopes have poor resolution.
E) The dust clouds in the Milky Way block almost all wavelengths except light.
Answer: D
Diff: 2 Page Ref: 5.5R

80) For what is an interferometer used?

A) to decrease the impact of poor seeing on telescope resolution
B) to increase the light grasp by combining the surface area of both scopes
C) to decrease the effects of light pollution on light grasp
D) to increase the sensitivity of infrared detectors
E) to improve the angular resolution of all types of telescopes
Answer: E
Diff: 2 Page Ref: 5.6R