TEST BANK
21st Century Astronomy FOURTH EDITION
LAURA KAY ◆ STACY PALEN ◆ BRAD SMITH ◆ GEORGE BLUMENTHAL
MICHAEL HOOD CAROL HOOD MICHAEL LOPRESTO
DONALD TERNDRUP
Contents
Assessment Guidelines Based on the Science of Learning vii Chapter 1
Why Learn Astronomy? 1
Chapter 2
Patterns in the Sky—Motions of Earth 15
Chapter 3
Motion of Astronomical Bodies 29
Chapter 4
Gravity and Orbits 44
Chapter 5
Light 59
Chapter 6
The Tools of the Astronomer 74
Chapter 7
The Birth and Evolution of Planetary Systems 88
Chapter 8
The Terrestrial Planets and Earth’s Moon 103
Chapter 9
Atmospheres of the Terrestrial Planets 120
Chapter 10 Worlds of Gas and Liquid—The Giant Planets 135 Chapter 11 Planetary Adornments—Moons and Rings 150 Chapter 12 Dwarf Planets and Small Solar System Bodies 164 Chapter 13 Taking the Measure of Stars 178 Chapter 14 Our Star—The Sun 191 Chapter 15 Star Formation and the Interstellar Medium 204 Chapter 16 Evolution of Low-Mass Stars 217
Chapter 17 Evolution of High-Mass Stars 231 Chapter 18 Relativity and Black Holes 245 Chapter 19 The Expanding Universe 261 Chapter 20 Galaxies 275 Chapter 21 The Milky Way—A Normal Spiral Galaxy 289 Chapter 22 Modern Cosmology 305 Chapter 23 Large-Scale Structure in the Universe 319 Chapter 24 Life 331
CHAPTER 1
Why Learn Astronomy?
CONCEPT MAP Sec 1.1 1. Astronomy I. Definition i. Astronomy loosely translated means “patterns among the stars” (MC: 1) II. Your Place in the Universe i. Your address: street, city, town, country, Earth, Sun, Milky Way, Local Group, Virgo Supercluster, universe (MC: 3, SA: 1) ii. Solar System: classical versus dwarf planets (TF: 1, 2, MC: 1–4, 7, SA: 2) iii. Milky Way: contains 200 to 400 billion stars (MC: 3, 5–7) iv. Local Group (MC: 3, 8) v. Virgo Supercluster (TF: 3, MC: 3) vi. Universe: contains hundreds of billions of galaxies, roughly as many stars as in the Milky Way (TF: 4) vii. Much of the universe is made of dark matter, and all of space is permeated by dark energy (TF: 5, MC: 9, 10) III. Scale of the Universe i. Speed of light, c 3 108 m/s (MC: 11) ii. d v t (TF: 2, MC: 12–17) iii. Light year is a measure of distance (TF: 6, MC: 12, SA: 3) iv. Distance versus time comparison: circumference of the Earth versus snapping your fingers (MC: 19, 20, SA: 4–6) IV. Origin and Evolution of Universe
i. Age of universe: 13.7 billion years (MC: 21) ii. Big Bang created the initial chemical elements: H, He, Li, Be, B (TF: 7, MC: 22, 23) iii. Stars manufactured the other chemical elements from nuclear burning and explosions (TF: 7, 8, MC: 24, 25, SA: 7) iv. Solar System formed v. Life evolved on Earth Sec 1.2 2. Science Involves Exploration and Discovery I. Evolution of Astronomy from New Technology i. Satellites, e.g., Sputnik, lunar exploration, Solar System exploration (TF: 10, MC: 26, SA: 8, 9) ii. Space-based astronomy used for high spatial resolution and access to wavelengths blocked by the atmosphere (TF: 10, MC: 27, SA: 9, 10) iii. Cross disciplines: astronomy, physics, chemistry, geology, planetary science iv. Computers: a new important tool for astronomers (SA: 9) Sec 1.3 3. Science Is a Way of Viewing the World I. Scientific Method i. Scientific method (MC: 28, 29, SA: 11) ii. Rational inquiry iii. Facts iv. Hypothesis (MC: 28, 30, SA: 11) v. Theory (MC: 28, 30, SA: 12) vi. Testable predictions/falsifiable (TF: 10, 11, MC: 28, SA: 11) vii. Physical laws viii. Scientific principle ix. Occam’s razor (MC: 31, 32) x. Cosmological principle (TF: 12, MC: 33, 34, SA: 13, 14) II. Scientific Knowledge Changes and Evolves i. Scientific knowledge continually evolves, usually slowly and gradually, because of new information (MC: 28) ii. Even when a theory is accepted as true, it may need revision later when new data comes along (TF:
14, MC: 28, 35, SA; 12) iii. Scientific revolutions: e.g. Newton/gravity, Einstein/special and general relativity, and quantum mechanics (MC: 36, SA: 15) iv. “Modern Physics,” post-quantum mechanics III. Challenges to Science i. Cultural/philosophical/religious influences ii. Scientific facts and theories need to be judged based on their predictions and observations alone iii. Scientists never ignore data just because it doesn’t fit their theory Sec 1.4 4. Patterns Make Our Lives and Science Possible I. Patterns Point Out Underlying Scientific Principles i. Patterns point out underlying scientific principles (TF: 15, MC: 37, SA: 16, 17) ii. Examples of patterns: rise/setting of Sun, seasons (MC: 38, SA: 16, 17) II. Mathematical Tools i. Mathematics is the “language of science,” a tool to quantify and compare patterns (MC: 39, SA: 18) ii. Scientific notation (MC: 40–43) iii. Ratios and proportionalities (MC: 44–49) iv. Units (MC: 50, 51) v. Reading a graph (MC: 52) vi. Slope of a line (MC: 53) Sec 1.5 5. Thinking Like an Astronomer I. What Is a Planet? i. Pluto was reclassified as a dwarf planet in 2006 (TF: 2, MC: 54–56, SA: 19) Sec 1.6 6. Origins: An Introduction I. Astrobiology i. Astrobiology: study of whether there is life elsewhere in the Solar System and the universe (MC: 57, SA: 20)
TRUE/FALSE 1. Our Sun is one of the most massive and luminous stars in the Milky Way. ANS: F DIF: Easy REF: Section 1.1 MSC: Factual TOP: 1IIii 2. Pluto is the only dwarf planet in our Solar System. ANS: F DIF: Easy REF: Section 1.1 MSC: Factual TOP: 1IIii | 5Ii 3. The Local Group is a member of the Virgo Supercluster. ANS: T DIF: Medium REF: Section 1.1 MSC: Factual TOP: 1IIiv | 1IIv 4. There are nearly 1,000 times more galaxies in the observable universe as there are stars in the Milky Way. ANS: F DIF: Medium REF: Section 1.1 MSC: Factual TOP: 1IIvi 5. A great majority of the matter in our universe is not visible. ANS: T DIF: Easy REF: Section 1.1 MSC: Factual TOP: 1IIvii 6. A light-year is a unit commonly used in astronomy as a measure of time. ANS: F DIF: Easy REF: Section 1.1 MSC: Factual TOP: 1IIIiii 7. Human beings are composed almost entirely of elements that were created in the Big Bang. ANS: F DIF: Medium REF: Section 1.1 MSC: Applied TOP: 1IVii | 1IViii 8. The heavy elements that make up most of Earth were formed via nuclear fusion in the center of the Sun. ANS: F DIF: Easy REF: Section 1.1 MSC: Factual TOP: 1IViii 9. The invention of satellites advanced astronomy because telescopes on satellites can observe wavelengths of electromagnetic radiation, such as X-rays, that cannot penetrate the Earth’s atmosphere. ANS: T DIF: Easy REF: Section 1.2 MSC: Factual TOP: 2Iii | 2Iiii 10. If a scientific theory cannot be tested, it is assumed to be true. ANS: F DIF: Easy REF: Section 1.3 MSC: Conceptual TOP: 3Ivi 11. A crucial component of a scientific theory is that it is able to be tested by observations and thus proven true or false. ANS: T DIF: Easy REF: Section 1.3 MSC: Conceptual TOP: 3Ivi
12. The Copernican principle states that there is nothing special about our local region of the universe. ANS: T DIF: Easy REF: Section 1.3 MSC: Conceptual TOP: 3Ix 13. One consequence of the principle of universality is that gravity works the same here on Earth as it does on the planet Jupiter. ANS: T DIF: Medium REF: Section 1.3 MSC: Conceptual TOP: 3Ix 14. Once a scientific theory is declared to be true, it is believed from that time onward. ANS: F DIF: Medium REF: Section 1.3 MSC: Conceptual TOP: 3IIii 15. Science proceeds by presuming that observed patterns in nature can be attributed to an underlying physical explanation. ANS: T DIF: Easy REF: Section 1.4 MSC: Factual TOP: 4Ii
MULTIPLE CHOICE 1. The word astronomy means: a. “patterns among the stars” b. “to study the stars” c. “discovering the universe” d. “the movement of the stars” e. “personality traits set by the stars” ANS: A DIF: Easy REF: Section 1.1 MSC: Factual TOP: 1Ii
2. According to the figure below, if you were to specify your address in the universe, listing your membership from the smallest to largest physical structures, it would be:
a. Earth, Local Group, Solar System, Andromeda, the universe b. Earth, Solar System, Local Group, Milky Way, the universe c. Earth, Solar System, Milky Way, Local Group, Virgo Supercluster, the universe d. Earth, Solar System, Milky Way, Fornax Supercluster, the universe e. Earth, Fornax Supercluster, Milky Way, Solar System, the universe ANS: C DIF: Difficult REF: Section 1.1 MSC: Factual TOP: 1IIi | 1IIv
3. Which of the following is FALSE? a. The Local Group is a member of the Virgo Supercluster, which contains thousands of galaxies. b. The Local Group contains two large spiral galaxies and a few dozen dwarf galaxies. c. Our Solar System has eight classical planets. d. The Milky Way galaxy contains approximately 100 million stars. e. The Virgo Supercluster is one of many superclusters in the universe ANS: D DIF: Difficult REF: Section 1.1 MSC: Factual TOP: 1IIii | 1IIiii | 1IIiv | 1IIv 4. The number of classical planets in our Solar System is: a. eight b. nine c. twelve d. six e. four ANS: A DIF: Easy REF: Section 1.1 MSC: Factual TOP: 1IIii 5. According to the figure below, the Earth is located approximately:
a. at the center of the Milky Way b. near the center of the Milky Way c. about halfway out from the center of the Milky Way d. at the farthest outskirts of the Milky Way e. outside the Milky Way, which is why we can see it as a band across the night sky ANS: C DIF: Easy REF: Section 1.1 MSC: Applied TOP: 1IIiii
6. What is the approximate number of stars in the Milky Way? a. 10 million b. 300 million c. 10 billion d. 300 billion e. 1 trillion ANS: D DIF: Medium REF: Section 1.1 MSC: Factual TOP: 1IIiii 7. If the diameter of the Milky Way is approximately 100,000 light-years, then our galaxy is _________ times larger than our Solar System. For reference, Pluto’s orbit has an approximate diameter of 80 AU. a. 100 b. 1,000 c. 10,000 d. 106 e. 108 ANS: E DIF: Difficult REF: Section 1.1 MSC: Applied TOP: 1IIiii 8. The Local Group is the environment around: a. the Earth-Moon system b. the Sun that contains about a dozen stars c. the Sun that contains over a million stars d. the Milky Way that contains a few dozen galaxies e. the Milky Way that contains a few thousand galaxies ANS: D DIF: Medium REF: Section 1.1 MSC: Factual TOP: 1IIiv 9. The majority of the mass in our universe is made up of: a. planets b. stars c. galaxies d. dust e. dark matter ANS: E DIF: Medium REF: Section 1.1 MSC: Factual TOP: 1IIvii
10. The majority of the energy in our universe is: a. radiated by stars from the nuclear fusion going on in their cores b. the kinetic energy found in the collisions of galaxies c. the gravitational potential energy of superclusters d. emitted in radioactive decays of unstable elements e. made up of dark energy that permeates space ANS: E DIF: Difficult REF: Section 1.1 MSC: Factual TOP: 1IIvii 11. The speed of light is approximately: a. 3,000 km/s b. 30,000 km/s c. 300,000 km/s d. 3 million km/s e. 3 billion km/s ANS: C DIF: Medium REF: Section 1.1 MSC: Factual TOP: 1IIIi 12. The average distance between the Earth and Sun is 1.5 1011 m, and light from the Sun takes approximately _________ to reach Earth. a. 8 seconds b. 8 minutes c. 8 hours d. 8 days e. 8 years ANS: B DIF: Easy REF: Section 1.1 MSC: Applied TOP: 1IIIii 13. If an event were to take place on the Sun, how long would it take for the light it generates to reach us? a. 8 minutes b. 11 hours c. 1 second d. 1 day e. It would reach us instantaneously. ANS: A DIF: Medium REF: Section 1.1 MSC: Applied TOP: 1IIIii
14. After the Sun, the next nearest star to us is approximately _________ away. a. 8 light-seconds b. 80 light-minutes c. 40 light-hours d. 4 light-years e. 200 light-years ANS: D DIF: Difficult REF: Section 1.1 MSC: Factual TOP: 1IIIii 15. One of the nearest stars is Alpha Centauri, whose distance is 4.2 1016 m. How long does it take light to travel from Alpha Centauri to us? a. 1.25 seconds b. 8.3 minutes c. 4.4 years d. 560 years e. 6,200 years ANS: C DIF: Medium REF: Section: 1.1 MSC: Applied TOP: 1IIIii 16. The distance to the nearest large spiral galaxy, the Andromeda galaxy, is 2.4 1022 m. How long does it take light to travel from Andromeda to us? a. 4.4 years b. 360 years c. 1.2 thousand years d. 2.5 million years e. 4.5 billion years ANS: D DIF: Medium REF: Section 1.1 MSC: Applied TOP: 1IIIii
17. The distance to the center of the Virgo cluster of galaxies is 5 1023 m. How long does it take light to travel from these galaxies to us? a. 7,000 years b. 54,000 years c. 120,000 years d. 12 million years e. 54 million years ANS: E DIF: Medium REF: Section 1.1 MSC: Applied TOP: 1IIIii 18. A light-year is a unit commonly used in astronomy as a measure of: a. time b. speed c. mass d. distance e. acceleration ANS: D DIF: Medium REF: Section 1.1 MSC: Factual TOP: 1IIIiii 19. The figure below measures distances in the amount of time it takes light to travel. If the circumference of Earth is a snap of your fingers (1/7 sec), the diameter of the Solar System is approximately equal to:
a. the length of a quick lunch b. the time to turn a page in a book c. the length of the work day d. the time you spent in high school e. a human lifetime ANS: C DIF: Difficult REF: Section 1.1 MSC: Applied TOP: 1IIIiv
20. If you compared the diameter of the Earth, which is 13,000 km, to 1 second, then what unit of time would be equivalent to the size of the Milky Way, whose diameter is 1021 m, and what significant milestone would this time correspond to in our evolution? a. 2 million years, the length of time humans have existed on Earth b. 30,000 years, the length of time humans have lived in North America c. 400 years, the length of time humans have been exploring the skies with telescopes d. 4 billion years, the age of the Solar System e. 14 billion years, the age of the universe ANS: A DIF: Difficult REF: Section 1.1 MSC: Applied TOP: 1IIIiv 21. Our universe is approximately 13.7 _________ years old. a. million b. billion c. trillion d. thousand e. hundred ANS: B DIF: Easy REF: Section 1.1 MSC: Factual TOP: 1IVi 22. The early universe was composed mainly of which two elements? a. hydrogen and helium b. carbon and oxygen c. hydrogen and oxygen d. carbon and iron e. nitrogen and oxygen ANS: A DIF: Easy REF: Section 1.1 MSC: Factual TOP: 1IVii
23. Which presently observed element or isotope was NOT produced in appreciable amounts in the very early universe shortly after the Big Bang? a. hydrogen b. helium-4 c. deuterium d. carbon e. helium-3 ANS: D DIF: Medium REF: Section 1.1 MSC: Factual TOP: 1IVii 24. Which is an important element in the composition of your body that was produced by nuclear fusion inside a star or an explosion of a star? a. iron b. calcium c. oxygen d. carbon e. all of the above ANS: E DIF: Easy REF: Section 1.1 MSC: Factual TOP: 1IViii 25. The most massive elements such as those that make up terrestrial planets like Earth were formed: a. in the early universe b. inside stars and supernovae c. through meteor collisions d. in the core of Earth e. during the formation of the Solar System ANS: B DIF: Medium REF: Section 1.1 MSC: Factual TOP: 1IViii 26. An unmanned robotic spacecraft has NOT landed on: a. an asteroid b. Mars c. Venus d. Pluto e. Titan, Saturn’s largest moon ANS: D DIF: Medium REF: Section 1.2 MSC: Factual TOP: 2Ii
27. Which is NOT an advantage of placing telescopes in space? From space, a telescope: a. has better access to high energy radiation such as ultraviolet light and X-rays b. has better access to low energy radiation such as infrared and microwave radiation c. avoids the blurring of images caused by the Earth’s atmosphere d. avoids light pollution from big cities e. is closer to the objects being observed ANS: E DIF: Easy REF: Section 1.2 MSC: Applied TOP: 2Iii 28. Which of the following is FALSE? a. A scientific theory is an undisputed fact. b. If continual testing of a hypothesis shows it to be valid, it may become an accepted theory. c. A hypothesis must always have one or more testable predictions. d. A scientific theory may eventually be proven wrong when scientists acquire new data. e. Scientific observations are used to test a hypothesis. ANS: A DIF: Medium REF: Section 1.3 MSC: Conceptual TOP: 3Ii | 3Iiv | 3Iv | 3Ivi | 3IIi | 3IIii 29. The scientific method is a process by which scientists: a. prove theories to be known facts b. gain confidence in theories by failing to prove them wrong c. show all theories to be wrong d. test the ideas of Aristotle e. survey what the majority of people think about a theory ANS: B DIF: Medium REF: Section 1.3 MSC: Applied TOP: 3Ii 30. A _________ becomes a _________ when repeated testing of its predictions does not disprove it. a. hypothesis; scientific method b. theory; scientific revolution c. phenomenon; theory d. hypothesis; theory e. law; theory ANS: D DIF: Medium REF: Section 1.3 MSC: Applied TOP: 3Iiv | 3Iv