Question 1. The universe is estimated to be between ten and twenty billion years old. This estimate is based on the value of which constant?
(A) The mass of the electron
(B) The Hubble Constant
(C) The speed of light
(D) The mass of the Earth
Question 2. According to Kepler’s Laws, all orbits of the planets are?
(A) Square
(B) Hyperbolas
(C) Parabolas
(D) Ellipses
Question 3. The VISUAL aurora consists of luminous arcs, rays or bands in the night sky, usually confined to high latitudes and located in the _____________.
(A) Ionosphere
(B) Ozonosphere
(C) Stratosphere
(D) Troposphere
Question 4. Whereas latitude and longitude are the coordinates of places on earth, the coordinates used for star locations are two of the following, choose two _____________.
(A) Declination
(B) Altitude
(C) Right ascension
(D) Ascension
Question 5. Which of the following statements is true for BOTH Saturn and Jupiter?
(A) Their periods of rotation are linked to their period of revolution
(B) Only one rotates rapidly while the other rotates very slowly
(C) Both rotate slower than the Earth
(D) Both rotate faster than the Earth
Question 6. Io, Europa, Ganymede and Callisto are satellites of what planet?
(A) Uranus
(B) Neptune
(C) Saturn
(D) Jupiter
Question 7. What percentage of the Sun’s mass has been converted to energy?
(A) .001%
(B) 2%
(C) 1%
(D) 50%
Question 8. The Magellanic Clouds are?
(A) Large clouds of gas and dust
(B) Elliptical galaxies
(C) Spiral galaxies
(D) Irregular galaxies
Question 9. Beads of light visible around the rim of the moon at the beginning and end of a total solar eclipse are called _____________.
(A) Rim Beads
(B) Baily’s Beads
(C) Solar Beads
(D) Lunar Beads
Question 10. Spectral line splitting due to the influence of magnetic fields is called?
(A) Zanstra’s Effect
(B) Planck Effect
(C) Zeeman Effect
(D) Boltzmann Effect
Question 11. Multiple Choice: In our solar system, which planet has a moon with a mass closest to its own?
(A) Pluto
(B) Jupiter
(C) Mars
(D) Earth
Question 12. The study of the origin and evolution of the universe is known as _____________.
(A) Cosmology
(B) Cryology
(C) Cystoscopy
(D) Tomography
Question 13. In which spectral region is it possible for astronomers to observe through clouds?
(A) X-ray
(B) Ultraviolet
(C) Radio
(D) Visual
Question 14. Which of the following is TRUE for Retrograde motion? Retrograde motion is _____________.
(A) An effect due to the projection of planet orbits onto the sky
(B) Undergone only by inferior planets
(C) Undergone only by superior planets
(D) Caused by epicycles
Question 15. A comet’s tail points in which direction?
(A) Away from the sun
(B) Behind the comet in its orbit
(C) Toward the earth
(D) Toward the sun
Question 16. Which type of star is maintained by the pressure of an electron gas?
(A) Black Hole
(B) Neutron Star
(C) White Dwarf
(D) Main Sequence Star
Question 17. When two heavenly bodies occupy the same longitude, the bodies are said to be in _____________.
(A) Series
(B) Parallel
(C) Conjunction
(D) Sympathy
Question 18. If you were watching a star collapsing to form a black hole, the light would disappear because it _____________.
(A) Is strongly redshifted
(B) Is strongly blueshifted
(C) Its color suddenly becomes black
(D) None of the above
Question 19. Which of the following men wrote the book “On the Revolutions of the Heavenly Spheres”?
(A) Newton
(B) Copernicus
(C) Euclid
(D) Kepler
Question 20. Refracting telescopes always contain which one of the following?
(A) Film
(B) Television Systems
(C) Lenses
(D) Mirrors
Question 21. According to Kepler’s Laws, the cube of the mean distance of a planet from the sun is proportional to the _____________.
(A) Fourth power of the mean distance
(B) Square of the period
(C) Cube of the period
(D) Area that is swept out
Question 22. This yellow-white, spectral F-type star is located in the constellation Carina south of the ecliptic. It ranks second in apparent brightness among the stars. Is this star _____________.
(A) Rigel
(B) Castor
(C) Alpha Centauri
(D) Canopus
Question 23. The 2.7 Kelvin cosmic background radiation is concentrated in the _____________.
(A) Ultraviolet
(B) Visible
(C) Infrared
(D) Radio wavelengths
Question 24. Which of the following is true for ORION? Orion is _____________.
(A) An asteroid
(B) The name given to a NASA spacecraft
(C) A constellation
(D) The brightest star in the sky
Question 25. A typical galaxy, such as our Milky Way galaxy, contains how many billion stars? Is it approximately _____________.
(A) 800 billion
(B) 200 billion
(C) 40 billion
(D) 10 billion