All Type II supernovae produce neutron stars when they collapse.
Our Sun will never become hot enough for carbon nuclei to fuse.
Venus’ rotation period is longer than its period of revolution around the Sun.
A carbon-detonation supernova starts out as a white dwarf in a close binary system.
Pluto is visible to the naked eye on extremely dark nights.
As it orbits the Earth, the Moon appears to move its own diameter (0.5 degrees)
eastward every hour against the background stars.
Like the discovery of Uranus, the finding of Neptune was accidental.
All four Jovian magnetic fields are good examples of the dynamo theory, with the
magnetic fields aligned well with the planets’ rapid rotations.
The polar caps and dust storms of Mars can be seen with Earth-based telescopes.
Most of the energy released during a supernova is emitted as neutrinos.
In a neutron star, the protons and electrons are fused together, leaving only neutrons.
All the planets orbit the Sun in exactly the same plane as the Earth.
The Hubble Space Telescope gives us its best resolution with X-rays.
The majority of the mass of the Milky Way lies farther out than the Sun’s orbit.
Wave energy can only be transmitted through a material medium.
The opacity of the atmosphere is partially corrected via adaptive optics.
Kepler found the orbits of planets are ellipses, not circles.
The helium flash increases the star’s luminosity.
Like our solar system, the whole Milky Way is about five billion years old.
The main reason that stars evolved off the main sequence is because they are becoming
less massive as energy is lost into space from the proton-proton cycle.
The one term of the Drake equation whose value remains completely unknown is the
average lifetime of a technological civilization.
21-cm radio waves allow us to map the distribution of hydrogen in spiral arms on the
opposite side of the Galaxy.
The Moon keeps one side facing the Earth because it doesn’t rotate on its axis.
As white light passes through a prism, the red (longer) wavelengths bend less than the
blue (shorter) wavelengths, so forming the rainbow of colors.
The water hole is a region around Sun-like stars where liquid water can exist on the
surfaces of terrestrial planets.
Our theories of galaxy formation are just as well developed and tested as are our
theories of star and planet formation.
Chromatic aberration affects reflector telescopes.
The final step in transporting energy to the surface of the Sun is via convection.
Almost all stars on the main sequence range from 0.1 to 15 solar radii.
The larger the red shift, the faster the distant galaxy is rushing toward us.
Doubling the temperature of a blackbody will double the total energy it radiates.
On average, active galaxies are rare and most are fairly distant from us.
The Great Wall is a huge sheet of galaxies that stretches for over 100 Mpc.
The problem with visual observations of our Galaxy is the luminous gas haze.
All four jovian planets are oblate, with larger polar than equatorial diameters.
Latitude and right ascension are coordinate systems used to find objects on the celestial
sphere.
The Sun’s magnetic field is very weak compared to Earth’s.
A star is 10 parsecs from Earth. Which statement is true?
A) The star is about 33 ly away.
B) The star is in a different galaxy.
C) The star’s apparent magnitude is smaller than its absolute magnitude.
D) The star’s apparent magnitude is larger than its absolute magnitude.
E) The star’s parallax is 1.0 arc seconds.
Which of these is the same for all forms of electromagnetic (E-M) radiation in a
vacuum?
A) amplitude
B) wavelength
C) frequency
D) speed
E) photon energy
If Uranus takes 84 years to orbit the Sun, and Voyager 2 found its rings wide open at
solstice in 1989, when will or did they next appear edge on, as seen from Earth?
A) 1995
B) 2003
C) 2010
D) 2025
E) They can never appear edge on, due to Uranus’ 98 degree axial tilt.
Which type of molecules, vital to our life, were found to have survived a fiery descent
to Earth on meteorites?
A) amino acids
B) DNA
C) lipids
D) sugars
E) vitamins
The Kuiper Belt is found where in the solar system?
A) beyond the orbit of Neptune
B) among the orbits of the terrestrial planets
C) between the orbits of Mars and Jupiter
D) between the orbits of Jupiter and Uranus
E) sixty degrees ahead or behind Jupiter
Most of the deuterium formed right after the Big Bang
A) is still around today.
B) broke down into electrons and neutrons.
C) turned into dark matter.
D) quickly burned into helium nuclei.
E) was found in the globular clusters.
In Bohr’s model of the atom, electrons
A) only make transitions between orbits of specific energies.
B) are not confined to specific orbits.
C) are spread uniformly through a large, positive mass.
D) can be halfway between orbits.
E) move from one orbit to the next orbit in many small steps.
The rate of cratering in the lunar highlands shows us that
A) they must be younger than the older, darker mare.
B) they range from 4.6 – 4.4 billion years old, on average.
C) the largest impacts are the youngest, such as Copernicus and Tycho.
D) the oldest rocks are at least as old as the mare, but some craters are much younger.
E) most of the asteroids must have hit the Moon, not the Earth.
A wave’s velocity is the product of the
A) frequency times the period of the wave.
B) period times the energy of the wave.
C) amplitude times the frequency of the wave.
D) frequency times the wavelength of the wave.
E) amplitude times the wavelength of the wave.
Compared to a 5 inch prime focus reflector, a 5 inch Newtonian reflector will
A) have more light gathering power.
B) have the same light gathering power.
C) be easier to build.
D) have more chromatic aberration.
E) have a larger hole in the center of its mirror.
The energy radiated by a typical quasar requires that its black hole accrete about
A) one solar mass a century.
B) one solar mass a decade.
C) one solar mass a year.
D) ten solar masses a year.
E) one solar mass a day.
As the Sun rotates, an individual sunspot can be tracked across its face. From eastern to
western limb, this takes about
A) 12 hours.
B) a week.
C) two weeks.
D) a month.
E) 5.5 years.
The greatest distance above or below the ecliptic the Moon can move is
A) 5.2 degrees.
B) 23.5 degrees.
C) 27.3 degrees.
D) 29.5 degrees.
E) 30 degrees.
The most common molecule in a molecular cloud is
A) methane, CH4.
B) molecular hydrogen, H2.
C) carbon monoxide, CO.
D) water, H2O.
E) ammonia, NH3.
Of the Jovian satellites, which shows the oldest, most cratered surface?
A) Enceladus
B) Callisto
C) Triton
D) Ganymede
E) Miranda
What can be said with certainty about a red star and a blue star?
A) The red star is more massive than the blue star.
B) The blue star is hotter than the red star.
C) The red star has a greater radial velocity than the blue star.
D) The blue star has a greater proper motion than the red star.
E) The red star is closer to Earth than the blue star.
Due to absorption of shorter wavelengths by interstellar dust clouds, distant stars appear
A) bluer.
B) brighter.
C) redder.
D) larger.
E) to have a higher radial velocity.
Why do we feel type O and B stars are poor candidates for extraterrestrial life?
A) They do not have a habitable zone.
B) They don’t produce enough yellow light.
C) Their lifetime is too short.
D) They don’t produce a planetary system.
E) Their habitable zone lies too close to the star.
About how many galaxies are presently known in our Local Group?
A) 3
B) 27
C) 55
D) 107
E) 254
Two-thirds of all known millisecond pulsars are found in what type of object?
A) giant molecular clouds
B) open clusters
C) globular clusters
D) emission nebulae
E) extremely distant galaxies
Some regions along the plane of the Milky Way appear dark because
A) there are no stars in these areas.
B) stars in that region are hidden by interstellar gas.
C) stars in that region are hidden by dark dust particles.
D) many brown dwarfs in those areas absorb light, which they turn into heat.
E) many black holes absorb all light from those directions.
In the gap between quasars and normal spirals lie
A) lobe radio galaxies.
B) Irr II galaxies.
C) S0 galaxies.
D) Seyfert galaxies.
E) Fisher-Tully galaxies.
Which statement about Jupiter’s rings is true?
A) They are larger than Saturn’s, but darker.
B) They lie inside Jupiter’s Roche Limit.
C) They are made, in part, of material ejected by Europa’s volcanoes.
D) They are dark because their ices are dirtier than Saturn’s.
E) They were discovered by Galileo at the same time he discovered the moons.
The synodic month is
A) 29.5 days.
B) about two days shorter than the sidereal month.
C) based on the Moon’s position relative to the stars.
D) the basis of the year we use in our modern calendar.
E) caused by both the Earth’s and Moon’s rotations.
Interstellar gas is composed mainly of
A) only hydrogen.
B) 90% hydrogen, 9% helium by weight.
C) 10% hydrogen, 90% helium by numbers of atoms.
D) some hydrogen, but mainly carbon dioxide.
E) ammonia, methane, and water vapor.
Which of these is not an argument for Cygnus X-1 being a black hole?
A) It is the third strongest source of X-rays in the sky.
B) Spectroscopic data suggests hot gas is flowing toward the X-ray source.
C) The mass of the visible star is greater than that of the X-ray source.
D) The mass of the X-ray source is about 10 solar masses.
E) The X-rays from the compact source vary in as little as a millisecond.
If a white dwarf gains enough mass from a nearby star to exceed its Chandrasekhar
limit it will become a nova.
Which of the following are most massive and luminous?
A) brown dwarfs
B) RR Lyrae variables
C) white dwarfs
D) T-Tauri variables
E) Cepheid variables
Which of these evolutionary paths is the fate of our Sun?
A) brown dwarf
B) supernova of Type II
C) pulsar
D) planetary nebula
E) nova
In the closed universe model, the geometry of spacetime in two dimensions resembles
the surface of a
A) flat piece of paper.
B) saddle.
C) cylinder.
D) sphere.
E) pyramid.
The Moon’s near side always faces Earth due to
A) the Sun’s gravity.
B) Earth’s magnetic field.
C) Earth’s tidal force.
D) conservation of angular momentum in the solar nebula.
E) the solar wind.
The stars α Cygni and β Cygni are in the constellation Cygnus. Which statement is true?
A) α Cygni appears brighter.
B) β is hotter.
C) α must be the eastern most star in the constellation.
D) β Cygni appears brighter.
E) β appears redder.
Why isn’t there water on Venus?
Contrast the appearance of the H-R diagrams of a young open and old globular cluster.
How are elements heavier than iron made? Why are they rare?
Compare and contrast longitude and right ascension.
A type Sa galaxy has a larger ________ than type Sc.
Contrast X-ray bursters with nova events.
The time for the Moon to orbit the Earth, relative to the distant stars is the ________.
A star on the red giant branch has a core about the size of ________.
Which is longer, the sidereal or synodic month? Why?
Why does the Moon play a larger role in tides than the Sun?
Single-celled life ruled the Earth from ________ to ________ billion years ago.
Why is it easier to travel to a remote viewing site with an 8″ Cassegrain than an 8″
Newtonian reflector?
What do infrared and ultraviolet waves have in common? How do they differ?
What are the common properties shared by most active galaxies and quasars? How do
these properties lead to an understanding of the central engine?
The corona can only be glimpsed from Earth during a ________.
Who discovered the period-luminosity relationship, and why was it so critical?