Exam 1 Study Guide

Question 1

A scientific hypothesis must be…

Answer 1

testable and falsifiable (never provable)

Question 2

Stars circle the same location every…

Answer 2

23 hours, 56 minutes, 04 seconds

Question 3

The Sun returns to the same approximate location every…

Answer 3

24 hours

Question 4

Motion of the Sun and Moon is ______ with respect to the stars

Answer 4

East

Question 5

Mars, Jupiter and Saturn also move __________ with respect to the stars, but _____________ when opposite the sun.

Answer 5

Eastward (most of the time), Westward

Question 6

Mercury and Venus move _________, but _________ after maximum Eastward elongation (ie. as far East as they are going to go)

Answer 6

Eastward (most of the time), Westward

Question 7

The whole sky is marked out in a grid like longitude and latitude, but called…

Answer 7

Right Ascension and Declination

Question 8

The angle between a line drawn from an observer to an object and a second line drawn from the observer to a different object is the _________ of those objects

Answer 8

angular separation

Question 9

The angle between a line drawn from an observer to one end of an object and a second line drawn from the observer to the other end of the object is the _________ of the object

Answer 9

angular size

Question 10

Trivium

Answer 10

The beginning studies of medieval universities: grammar, local, and rhetoric

Question 11

Quadrivium

Answer 11

Medieval preparatory work for philosophy and theology: arithmetic, astronomy, geometry, and music

Question 12

The stars appear to circle the star _______ in one _____________

Answer 12

Polaris, sidereal day

Question 13

An incorrect model used to understand motions is the _________, which is a transparent sphere with Earth spinning inside

Answer 13

Celestial Sphere

Question 14

The Ecliptic

Answer 14

The pathway that the sun takes (1 year); tilt of 23/5%

Question 15

The moon follows a different path near the ecliptic which takes about __________ to make an entire trip, with respect to the stars

Answer 15

27 days

Question 16

Solar Eclipses occur when….

Answer 16

The Sun and Moon align and the Moon is on the ecliptic

Question 17

Lunar Eclipses occur when…

Answer 17

The Sun and Moon are opposite and the Moon is near the Ecliptic

Question 18

Retrograde Motion

Answer 18

An APPARENT change in the movement of the planet through the sky. It is not REAL in that the planet does not physically start moving backwards in its orbit. It just appears to do so because of the relative positions of the planet and Earth and how they are moving around the Sun.

Question 19

The sun ___________ its own light, but the moon only ________, allowing us to understand lunar phases from the relative positions of the sun and moon

Answer 19

emits its own light, reflects

Question 20

Order of Moon Phases

Answer 20

New Moon
First Quarter
Full Moon
Third Quarter
New Moon

Question 21

Because the ecliptic and celestial equator are not the same, the sun is sometimes _______ in the sky at noon, sometimes _______

Answer 21

higher, lower

Question 22

zenith

Answer 22

point directly above in the sky

Question 23

Solstices

Answer 23

The points farthest North and South in the Sun’s travels along the ecliptic

Question 24

Equinoxes

Answer 24

The Sun’s crossings of the celestial equator

Question 25

Seasons occur because...

Answer 25

of the changing angle with which the sunlight hits the Earth

Question 26

Stars appear to circle a fixed point each sidebar day from ____ to ____

Answer 26

East, West

Question 27

The ____ and ____circle more or less with the _____, but take longer to complete the circle

Answer 27

Sun, Moon, stars

Question 28

The _____ and _____ appear further ____ each day with respect the stars

Answer 28

Sun, Moon, east

Question 29

The Sun and Moon also move ____ and ____ as they migrate Eastward

Answer 29

North, South

Question 30

The planets usually appear further ___ each day, but occasionally appear further _____

Answer 30

East, West

Question 31

Occasional retrograde motion always occur at opposition for ___, _____, and _____

Answer 31

Mars, Jupiter, and Saturn

Question 32

Occasional retrograde motion always occur after maximum eastward elongation for _____ and _______

Answer 32

Mercury and Venus

Question 33

The planets do not move the same _________ each day

Answer 33

Angular distance

Question 34

The phases of the moon are due to...

Answer 34

Differing illumination

Question 35

The seasons are due to the changing _______ position of the sun

Answer 35

North-South

Question 36

Evidence for "Fixed Earth"

Answer 36

1. We throw something up, it comes back down in the same place 2. The stars do not show visible parallax (changing apparent position due to our changing point of view)

Question 37

The Influence of Aristotle

Answer 37

1. All motion in the heavens is uniform circular motion. (otherwise a void is opened, which is impossible). 2. The objects in the heavens are made from perfect spheres and cannot change their intrinsic properties (e.g., their brightness). 
 3. The Earth is at the center of the Universe.

Question 38

Predictions of the Geocentric Model

Answer 38

- Mars, Jupiter and Saturn should be brighter during retrograde, since they are closer at that time - Mercury and Venus, if illuminated by the sun, should always appear in crescent/new phase. - Stars should show no parallax

Question 39

Difference between Geocentric Model and Heliocentric Model:

Answer 39

``` Geo = Earth is center of universe Helio = Sun is center of universe ```

Question 40

Difficulties with Copernican Model

Answer 40

The moon still went around the earth, requiring 2 centers of motion, Did NOT work as well as the geocentric model, because it used perfect circles, Whether it was "pleasing to the mind" was a matter of opinion. It still had multiple circles to get positions right

Question 41

Kepler's Laws

Answer 41

Law 1: (1609) The orbit of each planet is an ellipse, with the sun at one focus. Law 2: (1609) A line drawn from a planet to the sun sweeps out equal areas in equal times. Law 3: (1618) The square of the orbital period of a planet is directly proportional to the cube of its average distance from the sun.

Question 42

Kepler's Law Equation

Answer 42

p squared/a cubed = k

Question 43

Kepler's Law Explained

Answer 43

``` P = period of time A = distance Au = astronomical unit ```

Question 44

Stellar Motion Photos

Answer 44

90 degrees = horizontal 0 degrees = vertical 45 degrees = slanted

Question 45

Velocity

Answer 45

the change in position of an object with respect to time

Question 46

Acceleration

Answer 46

the change in velocity of an object with respect to time

Question 47

Law 1: Inertial Law

Answer 47

A body at rest or moving with constant velocity reminds in that state until upon by a force

Question 48

Law 2: Force Law

Answer 48

A body acted upon by a force will change its velocity. The acceleration will be in the direction of the force applied and directly proportional to the force applied, but inversely proportional to the body's mass

Question 49

Law 3: Reaction Law

Answer 49

For every applied force, a force of equal size but opposite direction arises

Question 50

Parallax

Answer 50

the effect whereby the position or direction of an object appears to differ when viewed from different positions, e.g. through the viewfinder and the lens of a camera