How many zodiac constellations are circumpolar (as seen from WI)?
none
The moon and stars shine primarily because
they reflect light from the sun
Mars reached opposition in early November, 2005. Mars is at opposition every 2.2 years but Pluto is at opposition every 1.005 years. The reason Pluto's oppositions come more often is: (You need to figure it out, not look it up)
Mars has a year almost 2 Earth years, but Pluto takes much longer to orbit the sun.
Why do most backyard astronomers have reflecting telescopes instead of refracting telescopes?
Reflectors are lighter in weight and all colors focus in the same place
What galaxy can be seen without even binoculars (under the right conditions; in the northern hemisphere)?
Andromeda Galaxy
What do you call that round star chart thing where the top slides so you can set it for what constellations are up at a certain day and time?
planisphere
Which of these is one of the most easily visible (though a telescope) Messier objects?
The ring Nebula
To be able to use some light but not degrade your night vision (night vision: ability to see at low light levels), astronomers use
red light
Averted Vision" is used by backyard astronomers to see faint objects. "Averted vision" means to
look at a point near the object, instead of looking directly at the object
In the Northern hemisphere, "Polaris is always closer to the Northern horizon", but the one exception is if it is at the zenith. If Polaris is at your zenith (straight overhead), where are you on Earth? *
North Pole
If you travel to Canada from Eau Claire, how does the number of circumpolar ("never set") stars change? ***
it increases
The town of Cadot has a sign that says it is "halfway between the equator and the North pole". How high above the horizon is Polaris as seen from Cadot? ***
45�
When is the sun in your eyes when you drive west just before sunset on an East-west road? Hint: Looking down a road to the west, at most times of year the sun will set to the left or right behind houses and/or trees, *
near both of the equinoxes
If you travel south, how does the altitude (above the horizon) of Polaris change? **
it moves closer to the northern horizon
What is the declination of Mintaka (Delta Orionis), a star that is located on the celestial equator? (see figures 1-7, 1-8, 1-16 in "In Quest of the Universe"). ***
0�
At our latitude of 44�, stars with declination of 44� pass overhead. The sun never passes overhead, since its maximum declination is ___ (at summer solstice), (and its dec is _____ at the equinoxes). ***
23�, 0�
If you took a many-hour video of the northern sky from Eau Claire, you could see some stars move in circular patterns. All of these circles are centered near **
the North star, the North celestial pole, Polaris
The length of daylight is longest on __________________ and the sun rises farthest to the north on ________________. **
summer solstice, summer solstice
Winter is colder than summer" because of the tilt of Earth's axis away from the sun in winter. It comes down to two reasons. One reason is that the days are shorter (the nights are longer). What is the other reason? ***
the sun is lower in the sky, so the light is less intense
What could make a planet have very extreme seasons (a big difference between summer and winter)? **
a large axis tilt relative to its orbit
In January we can see Orion in the night sky, but not in June. If we went to the southern hemisphere, could we see Orion in June?
No, everyone on Earth sees the sun near Orion in June
If we could see the stars in the day, we could see the sun change its position compared to the stars. (And we could see the sun and stars rise and set together, caused by Earth's rotation). What causes the sun to "move across the stars"? *
the earth orbiting the sun
Would the constellations still have the same pattern if seen from Pluto? ***
Yes, because the stars are so far away compared to the distance to Pluto
At noon in mid-July, the sun is in the constellation Gemini. How long will it be before you could see Gemini high in the sky at midnight?
6 months
If the leftmost star in Orion's Belt sets at 6am today, about when will it set tomorrow?
4 minutes before 6am
When during the year does the sun set north of due West?
from the vernal equinox to the autumnal equinox
Once again, you wake up in a field at night and do not know where you are. You resolve to change your life so that this doesn't happen again. You find the North Star in the sky to your left and see the moon rising straight ahead of you. From this you know
you are in the northern hemisphere but do not know the latitude
If you are at a latitude of 35� north, where is Polaris in the sky?
at an altitude of 35� above the northern horizon
Why does the sun move along the ecliptic?
Earth is orbiting the sun
You are at Hobbs Observatory and the volunteer running the telescope asks "Should we point the telescope at M80?" You guess at what kind of object it is and say....
a star cluster
the seasons on Earth occur primarily because
the Earths axis is tilted with respect to the ecliptic plane
the :zenith" defines a direction
vertically above the observer
At noon in mid-July, the sun is in the constellation Gemini. How long will it be before you could see Gemini high in the sky at midnight?
6 months
Pluto is now defined to be
a dwarf planet
From the Earth's north pole
only half the celestial sphere can be seen on any clear night
You see Polaris 30 degrees above the horizon. At what latitude are you located?
30 degrees
In WI we can't see Canis Major in the evening in June and we call it a "winter constellation". can people in the southern hemisphere see Canis Major in the evening in June?
No, because of where the earth is in its orbit around the sun
The statement that "astronauts are weightless on the moon" is
false because the moon exerts a gravitational force on their bodies
Suppose 10 years from now you see a bright "star" in the East soon after sunset. You conclude that the "star
is not venus because venus can never been seen toward the East soon after sunset
If you lived at a moonbase on side of the moon facing earth
you could see stars move, but it takes them a month to rise and set
At what time of year does WI actually get the most intense sunlight?
summer solstice
In Galileo's lifetime, which was evidence against the heliocentric theory?
no stars had been found to have parallax, now they have
In which Apollo mission did all 3 astronauts die?
Apollo 1
When during the year does the sun set north of due west?
from vernal equinox to the autumnal equinox
right ascension is used to
give locations of stars on the celestial sphere
The observed changing positions of the stars during a night is the result of the
Earths rotation about its axis
The ocean tides experienced on Earth when the sun and moon are on opposite sides are
more pronounced than usual as the sun and moon work together
A new comet is discovered, with a semi-major axis of its orbit around the sun of 18 AU. How long does it take to orbit once around the sun?
square roof of 18 to the 3rd= 76 years
The constellations of the zodiac all
lie along the ecliptic
Suppose you are on a cruise in the Northern hemisphere, heading south toward the equator. As you travel, Polaris appears.........in the sky each night.
lower
You are still on the cruise heading south toward the equator. As you travel, the number of circumpolar stars that you observe each night
decreases
The date is Sept. 21st, and at noon you see the sun directly overhead
you are at the equator
The constellations of the zodiac are all located
along the ecliptic
How many zodiac constellations are circumpolar as seen from WI?
none
An observer at Earths equator will see the north celestial pole
on the northern horizon
Stars on the celestial equator
have a declination of zero
The time between Mars going through one loop of retrograde motion and it later going through another loop of retrograde motion is about
more than a year and less than 3 years
Kochab is a star that is always in the sky when viewed from Eau Claire. Given that information, where should you look to find Kochab?
in the northern sky
Proxima Centauri, in the Alpha Centauri star system, is the nearest star to us. For these planets and Proxima Centauri from closest to farthest from the sun...
venus, jupiter, pluto, proxima centauri
In WI, the vernal equinox occurs in March. Where on the Earth does the vernal equinox occur in December?
the vernal equinox always occurs on the same day, it is not related to where you are on Earth!
When we see the sun rise farthest north during the year it will set
farthest north
a light year is
the distance light travels in one year
How many stars in our solar system?
one
Why would the constellations still have the same pattern if seen from Pluto?
because the stars are so far away compared to the distance from Earth to Pluto
An early riser notices the moon setting at sunrise. What phase is it?
full
You see a waxing crescent moon near the eastern horizon. What time is it?
9 am
If you could see the stars during the day, this is what the sky would look like at noon on a given day. The sun is near the stars of the constellation Gemini. Near which constellation would you expect the sun to be located at sunset?
Gemini
If earth's moon orbited around earth in the direction opposite to earths rotation, it would
rise an hour earlier each day instead of an hour later
What time of year will a new moon reach its highest altitude above the horizon?
summer solstice
Which of the following statements constitutes a scientific hypothesis:
atoms are the smallest particles of matter that exist
-must be testable
What is the phase of the moon during a partial lunar eclipse?
full
Suppose that you live in WI an a friend calls from North Carolina. "Hi, its 10 am and there is a total lunar eclipse just starting," says your friend. You reply "Its only 9 am here" and realize
your friend must be wrong, since you can't see a lunar eclipse at 10 am
One night you see the moon straight ahead of you as you look south, and you notice it is near a bright star. If you go out and look south the next night at the same time, what will you see?
the star will be in almost the same place, and the moon will be more to the east