Question 1[A]

. 
 When Venus is at inferior conjunction, it is 
 
 Answer

. . 1. at its smallest distance from the Earth.
.
. . 2. traveling at its greatest speed.
.
. . 3. at its greatest angle from the Sun as seen from the Earth.
.
. . 4. at its greatest distance from the Earth.
.
. 

2 points
Question 2(Don’t know)
. 
 In the geocentric model of the solar system, which one of the following phases of
Venus should be visible from Earth? 
 
 Answer
. . 1. gibbous phase between third quarter and full
.
. . 2. full
.
. . 3. new
.
. . 4. gibbous phase between first quarter and full
.
. 

2 points
Question 3[B]
. 
 When viewed from the Earth, the celestial sphere (the background of stars) moves
east to west on a daily basis. This motion is caused by the 
 
 Answer
. . 1. revolution of the Earth around the Sun.
.
. . 2. rotation of the Earth on its axis.
.
. . 3. motion of the stars around the galactic center.
.
. . 4. motion of the Sun through the Galaxy.
.
. 

2 points
Question 4[A]
. 
 In the geocentric model for the solar system developed by Ptolemy, to what does the
word epicycle refer?
 
 
 Answer
. . 1. small circle about which a planet moves while the center of this circle moves
. around
. the Earth

. . 2. large circle (orbit) that carries the planet around the Earth while the planet itself
. is moving
. in a smaller circle
.
. . 3. complete cycle of planetary motions after which the motions repeat themselves
. (almost)
. exactly
.
. . 4. length of time from when the planet is farthest from the Earth to the next time it
. is farthest
. from the Earth
. 

2 points
Question 5[C]
. 
 Suppose that, at the same time on the same night, we see two supernovas (exploding
stars) explode in the night sky. If one is in the Andromeda Galaxy, 2 million light-
years away from us, and the other is in the galaxy M82, 6 million light-years away
from us, which of the following statements concerning the actual explosion times
of these supernovas is correct? 
 
 Answer
. . 1. We cannot tell which star actually exploded first because both stars are so far away.
.
. . 2. The supernova in the Andromeda Galaxy actually occurred before the one in M82.
.
. . 3. The supernova in the Andromeda Galaxy actually occurred after the one in M82.
.
. . 4. We know both stars exploded at the same time because we saw the explosions at
. the. same time.
. 

2 points
Question 6[D]
. 
 A rocket that is accelerated by the force from the ejection of large quantities of hot
gases represents an example of which physical law originally stated by Newton?

 
 Answer
. . 1. Newton's first law of motion, concerned with state of rest or uniform motion
.
. . 2. Newton's law of elliptical motion of planets
.
. . 3. Newton's law of universal gravitation
.
. . 4. Newton's third law of motion, concerning action and reaction forces
.
. 

2 points
Question 7[D]
. 
 In the years after Newton published his laws of motion, it was found that the
observed positions of the planet Uranus did not match the predictions of Newton's
theory. The reason for this turned out to be 
 
 Answer
. . 1. the gravitational influence of a previously unknown planet.
.
. . 2. inaccuracies in Newton's laws (later corrected by general relativity).
.
. . 3. inaccuracies in the observations.
.
. . 4. the perturbing effects of previously unknown satellites (moons) of Uranus.
.
. 

2 points
Question 8[A]
. 
 A certain star is found to be 340 ly from the Earth. Expressed in parsecs, the distance
is approximately 
 
 Answer
. . 1. 105 pc.
.
. . 2. 0.340 kpc (kiloparsecs).
.
. . 3. 750 pc.
.
. . 4. 1100 pc.
.
. 

2 points
Question 9[B]
. 
 From the Earth, we observe occasional retrograde motion in the motion of 
 
 Answer
. . 1. only the inner planets: Mercury and Venus.
.
. . 2. only the outer planets: Mars and beyond.
.
. . 3. all the planets.
.
. . 4. all the planets and the Moon.
.
. 

2 points
Question 10[B]
. 
 What is the angle between the line from the Earth to Mercury and the line from
Mercury to the Sun when Mercury is at greatest elongation? 
 
 Answer
. . 1. 0°
.
. . 2. 90°
.
. . 3. 180°
.
. . 4. anywhere between 0° and 180°, depending on the particular planetary alignment
.
. 

2 points
Question 11[A]
. 
 For many years, the Palomar telescope (5-m diameter) in California was the largest
telescope in the world; it has now been surpassed by both Keck telescopes (each
of diameter 10 m) in Hawaii. How much greater is the light-gathering power of a
Keck telescope than that of the Palomar telescope? 
 
 Answer
. . 1. 4 times greater
.
. . 2. 1.4 times greater
.
. . 3. 8 times greater
.
. . 4. 2 times greater
.

2 points
Question 12[D]
. 
 A Cassegrain reflecting telescope is constructed using a 
 
 Answer
. . 1. curved primary mirror followed by a series of both plane and curved mirrors
. that. channel the light to a remote location fixed with respect to the Earth.
.
. . 2. concave primary mirror and a flat, diagonal secondary mirror mounted at a
. 45°. angle to the telescope axis.
.
. . 3. concave primary mirror and concave secondary mirror that reflects light back
. through
. a hole in the primary mirror.
.
. . 4. concave primary mirror followed by a smaller convex secondary mirror that
. reflects
. light back through a hole in the primary mirror.
. . .
. 

2 points
Question 13[A]
. 
 Which of the following techniques is the key factor in a telescope that uses adaptive
optics to correct for atmospheric distortion of images, or “seeing”?
 
 
 Answer
. . 1. Computer-controlled motors adjust the position and shape of one of the small
. mirrors
. within the optics many times per second.
.
. . 2. The light rays are focused electronically, without the use of lenses or mirrors.
.
. . 3. Computer-controlled motors rapidly adjust the orientation and position of the
. separate
. primary mirrors in a multiple-mirror telescope (MMT).
.
. . 4. A corrector lens compensates for image distortion by electronic control of its shape.
.
. 

2 points
Question 14[A]
. 
 How much more efficient in collecting incoming photons is the modern charge-
coupled device (CCD) compared to a typical photographic plate? 
 
 Answer
. . 1. more than 100 times
.
. . 2. about 35 times
.
. . 3. a little better than a factor of 2
.
. . 4. about 10 times
.
. 

2 points
Question 15[C]
. 
 The first astronomical radio source was detected and identified in the year 
 
 Answer
. . 1. 1897.
.
. . 2. 1967.
.
. . 3. 1932.
.
. . 4. 1945.
.
. 

2 points
Question 16[A]
. 
 What fraction of the light falling on a piece of photographic film is typically wasted
(does NOT contribute to the formation of the image)? 
 
 Answer
. . 1. 18%
.
. . 2. 45%
.
. . 3. 2%
.
. . 4. 98%
.
. 

2 points
Question 17[A]
. 
 Which of the following telescopes consists of a concave, spherical primary mirror
and a glass corrector plate to correct for the spherical aberration in the primary?
 
 
 Answer
. . 1. Schmidt telescope
.
. . 2. Cassegrain telescope
.
. . 3. refracting telescope
.
. . 4. Newtonian telescope
.
. 

2 points
Question 18[A]
. 
 Which of the following sequences of electromagnetic radiation is correct, in order of
increasing energy of the photons (or quanta)? 
 
 Answer
. . 1. visible light, UV radiation, X rays, gamma rays
.
. . 2. radio waves, microwaves, gamma rays, UV radiation
.
. . 3. visible light, microwave, radio waves, infrared rays
.
. . 4. gamma rays, radio waves, X rays, infrared rays
.
. 

2 points
Question 19[A]
. 
 An electrical spark, such as lightning, generates electromagnetic radiation over a
wide range of wavelengths. How much longer will a pulse of radio energy take to
travel between two detector stations 100 m apart than will a pulse of ultraviolet
radiation from the same spark? 
 
 Answer
. . 1. The time will be identical because both pulses travel at the speed of light.
.
. . 2. much shorter because long wavelength radiations travel faster
.
. . 3. just a little longer because the high frequency UV radiation travels faster than the
. low. frequency radio waves
.
. . 4. much longer because radio waves have much longer wavelengths and therefore
. travel
. slower
. 

2 points
Question 20[D]
. 
 The two ranges of electromagnetic radiation for which the Earth's atmosphere is
reasonably transparent are 
 
 Answer
. . 1. UV and radio waves.
.
. . 2. X rays and visible radiation.
.
. . 3. visible and far infrared radiation.
.
. . 4. visible and radio radiation.
.
. 

2 points
Question 21[A]
. 
 Which very significant fact concerning the spectra produced by hot gases, such as
elements heated on the solar surface (Fraunhofer, with the solar spectrum) or in a
 flame (Bunsen and Kirchhoff, with laboratory spectra), was discovered in the
1800s? 
 
 Answer
. . 1. Each chemical element produces its own characteristic pattern of spectral lines that
. remains
. fixed as the temperature increases.
.
. . 2. Chemical elements emit spectral lines that move continuously toward the blue end
. of the
. spectrum as the gas temperature increases.
.
. . 3. All chemical elements produce the same set of spectral emission or absorption
. lines,
. but their relative emission intensities differ; hence elements are distinguishable
. from each other by their spectra.
.
. . 4. The higher the temperature, the greater the redshift of the emitted spectral lines.
.
. 

2 points
Question 22[A]
. 
 The hot, dense gas existing on the Sun emits energy 
 
 Answer
. . 1. at all wavelengths, with a peak at one particular wavelength (color).
.
. . 2. with the same intensity at all wavelengths. Earth's atmosphere absorbs radiation at both short and long visible
.
. . 3. only at certain wavelengths and not at other wavelengths.
.
. . 4. mostly at the longest and shortest wavelengths, with a minimum in between.
.
. 

2 points
Question 23[D]
. 
 The majority of the mass of ordinary matter resides in the 
 
 Answer
. . 1. electron clouds around the nuclei of atoms.
.
. . 2. electrons and the nuclei, shared about equally.
.
. . 3. electromagnetic energy stored in the atom, from E = mc 2.
.
. . 4. nuclei of atoms.
.
. 

2 points
Question 24[D]
. 
 Ionization of an atom occurs when 
 
 Answer
. . 1. an electron drops from a higher energy level to the ground state.
.
. . 2. the nucleus is split, or fission occurs.
.
. . 3. an electron is lifted from the ground state to an excited level.
.
. . 4. an electron is removed from the atom.
.
. 

2 points
Question 25[A]
. 
 The position of an element in the periodic table is directly related to the 
 
 Answer
. . 1. number of electrons in the atomic nucleus and hence to its negative charge.
.
. . 2. total number of protons and neutrons in the atomic nucleus.
.
. . 3. mass of the nucleus of the atom.
.
. . 4. number of protons in the atomic nucleus and hence to its positive charge.
.
. 

2 points
Question 26[D]
. 
 If a continuous spectrum of ultraviolet radiation passes through a tube of cool
hydrogen gas, what happens to its spectrum? 
 
 Answer
. . 1. All the radiation passes unhindered except the Lyman Lα wavelength, which is
. absorbed
. by the atoms.
.
. . 2. All the radiation passes through the tube unhindered because the hydrogen gas
. is cool
. and cannot absorb energy.
.
. . 3. Some of the radiation at all wavelengths is absorbed, reducing the intensity at all
. wavelengths
. uniformly.
.
. . 4. All the radiation passes through the tube unhindered except at the specific
. wavelengths
. of the Lyman series, Lα, Lβ, and so on, which are absorbed by the atoms.
. 

2 points
Question 27[A]
. 
 A violet photon has a wavelength of 400 nm. What is its energy? 
 
 Answer
. . 1. 4.97 × 10–19 joules
.
. . 2. 5.21 × 10–19 joules
.
. . 3. 3.62 × 10–19 joules
.
. . 4. 6.88 × 10–19 joules
.
. 

2 points
Question 28[C]
. 
 To a physicist, a blackbody is defined as an object that 
 
 Answer
. . 1. always appears to be black, whatever its temperature.
.
. . 2. always emits the same spectrum of light, whatever its temperature.
.
. . 3. absorbs all radiation that falls on it.
.
. . 4. reflects all radiation that falls on it, never heating up and always appearing black.
.
. 

2 points
Question 29[B]
. 
 The Doppler effect is the 
 
 Answer
. . 1. increase in the observed wavelength of light if the light source is moving toward you.
.
. . 2. increase in the observed wavelength of light if the source of light is moving away from you.
.
. . 3. change in the wavelength of peak emission of light when the source temperature changes.
.
. . 4. splitting of spectral lines into two or more wavelengths because the source of the
. light
. is in a strong magnetic field.
. 

2 points
Question 30[A]
. 
 An atom of hydrogen undergoes a collision with another atom in a hot gas in which
the energy of collision is about 11 eV. What is the likely outcome of this collision in
terms of the atom? (See Figure 4-11, Comins and Kaufmann, Discovering the
Universe, 8th ed.)
 
 
 Answer
. . 1. The electron in the atom will be excited to the second excited level, n = 3,
. and. de-excitation will generate either a Lα UV Lyman photon or an Hα visible
. and a Lα UV photon.
.
. . 2. The electron in the atom will be excited to the first excited level, and de-excitation
. to .the ground state will produce a visible photon of Balmer Hα light.
.
. . 3. The electron in the atom will be excited to the first excited level, n = 2. Its return
. to .the ground state will produce a Lα UV Lyman photon.
.
. . 4. The electron of the hydrogen atom will be excited beyond the ionization level
. (n =. ∞); the atom will be ionized, and the electron will leave the atom completely.
. 

2 points
Question 31[A]
. 
 What is the cause of an annular eclipse? 
 
 Answer
. . 1. The Moon's position in its orbit is near apogee, its farthest point from Earth.
.
. . 2. The Moon's position in its orbit is near perigee, its nearest point to Earth.
.
. . 3. Earth's position in its orbit is near aphelion, its farthest point from the Sun.
.
. . 4. Earth's position in its orbit is near perihelion, its nearest point to the Sun.
.
. 

2 points
Question 32[D]
. 
 The bright star Procyon is seen to rise on the eastern horizon at 10:00 P.M. on
December 1. At approximately what time will this star rise one week later, on
December 8? 
 
 Answer
. . 1. 10:28 P.M.
.
. . 2. 9:53 P.M.
.
. . 3. 10:00 P.M.
.
. . 4. 9:32 P.M.
.
. 

2 points
Question 33[A]
. 
 The Moon is seen to keep one face toward the Earth at all times. If viewed from a
point directly above the plane of the planetary system, how does it have to rotate
to maintain this alignment? 
 
 Answer
. . 1. The moon must rotate once per month, or once per orbit around the Earth.
.
. . 2. The moon must rotate once per year as the Earth and the Moon orbit the Sun together.
 .
. . 3. The moon must rotate once per day to maintain its direction toward the Earth.
.
. . 4. The moon must not rotate at all because we always see the same face from Earth.
.
. 

2 points
Question 34[C]
. 
 The length of time for the Moon to move from new Moon to new Moon is known as
one synodic month. Compared to one full orbital period with respect to the star
background, or one sidereal month, the synodic month is 
 
 Answer
. . 1. about 2 days shorter.
.
. . 2. about twice as long.
.
. . 3. about 2 days longer.
.
. . 4. exactly the same length.
.
. 

2 points
Question 35[A]
. 
 For an observer at a fixed location on the Earth, the angle between the north celestial
pole and an observer's horizon depends on the 
 
 Answer
. . 1. observer's latitude (north or south of the equator).
.
. . 2. time of day.
.
. . 3. time of year.
.
. . 4. observer's longitude (east or west of Greenwich).
.
. 

2 points
Question 36[A]
. 
 Where would you have to be to see the north celestial pole directly over your head
(i.e., in your zenith)? 
 
 Answer
. . 1. at the North Pole of the Earth
.
. . 2. on the equator
.
. . 3. at a position about 1° away from the Earth's South Pole, to account for precession
.
. . 4. at the South Pole of the Earth
.
. 

2 points
Question 37[A]
. 
 If the daytime sky were not so bright, how fast would we see the Sun move across it
with respect to the stars as it moves through one full circle in one year? 
 
 Answer
. . 1. about 1° per day
.
. . 2. exactly 24° per day or 1° per hour
.
. . 3. The Sun would never appear to move with respect to the stars in the sky.
.
. . 4. about 15° per hour
.
. 

2 points
Question 38[A]
. 
 1 arc minute is equal to 
 
 Answer
. . 1. 1/60°.
.
. . 2. 1/3,600°.
.
. . 3. 1/60 arc second.
.
. . 4. 1/60 of a full circle.
.
. 

2 points
Question 39[D]
. 
 The most recent correction to the calendar to keep the yearly date in tune with the
seasons (resulting in the present calendar) was instituted by 
 
 Answer
. . 1. Galileo.
.
. . 2. Pope Gregory XIII.
.
. . 3. Sir Isaac Newton.
.
. . 4. Julius Caesar.
.
. 

2 points
Question 40[C]
. 
 Which of the following planets will be seen as crescent-shaped from the Earth at
certain times in its orbit? 
 
 Answer
. . 1. Mars
.
. . 2. Jupiter
.
. . 3. Venus
.
. . 4. Uranus
.
. 

2 points
Question 41[B]
. 
 When Saturn is at its farthest distance from the Earth, it is at 
 
 Answer
. . 1. opposition.
.
. . 2. conjunction.
.
. . 3. greatest elongation (about 47° from the Sun).
.
. . 4. inferior conjunction.
.
. 

2 points
Question 42[C]
. 
 What fraction of the light falling on a piece of photographic film is typically wasted
 (does NOT contribute to the formation of the image)? 
 
 Answer
. . 1. 45%
.
. . 2. 98%
.
. . 3. 18%
.
. . 4. 2%
.
. 

2 points
Question 43[D]
. 
 When observing planetary motions from the Earth, the phrase direct motion refers to
the
 
 
 Answer
. . 1. slow westward motion of the planet from night to night compared to the background stars.
.
. . 2. apparent westward motion of the planet (and the Sun, the Moon, and stars) across the
. sky. due to the rotation of the Earth.
.
. . 3. motion of the planet directly toward or away from the Earth in certain parts of the
. planet's
. orbit.
.
. . 4. slow eastward motion of the planet from night to night compared to the background stars.
.
. 

2 points
Question 44[C]
. 
 1 arc second is equal to 
 
 Answer
. . 1. 1/3,600°.
.
. . 2. 1/360 of a full circle.
.
. . 3. 1/60°.
.
. . 4. 1/60 of a full circle.
.
. 

2 points
Question 45[A]
. 
 The main reason for placing a telescope and scientific equipment into an aircraft to
carry out infrared astronomy is to
 
 
 Answer
. . 1. avoid the absorption of the IR radiation by water vapor.
.
. . 2. avoid stray IR radiation from the warm Earth and its occupants.
.
. . 3. obtain photographs of resolution higher than can be obtained on the ground.
.
. . 4. obtain longer observing times on specific sources by moving in the direction of
. the. Earth's rotation.
. 

2 points
Question 46[B]
. 
 From a location in the northern hemisphere, the pole star always appears at an angle
above the northern horizon equal to 
 
 Answer
. . 1. 180° plus the longitude of the location.
.
. . 2. the latitude of the location.
.
. . 3. the longitude of the location.
.
. . 4. 90° minus the latitude of the location.
.
. 

2 points
Question 47[D]
. 
 The number of degrees in a semicircle is 
 
 Answer
. . 1. 57.3.
.
. . 2. 90.
.
. . 3. 360.
.
. . 4. 180.
.
. 

2 points
Question 48[C]
. 
 In single-telescope astronomical systems, either optical or radio, the 
 
 Answer
. . 1. smaller the main mirror or lens or radio dish aperture in general, the sharper the image.
.
. . 2. longer the focal length of the primary mirror or lens or radio dish, the sharper the image.
.
. . 3. longer the wavelength, the sharper the image.
.
. . 4. larger the main mirror or lens or radio dish aperture in general, the sharper the image.
.
. 

2 points
Question 49[C]
. 
 Newton stated that if a force were applied to an object in space, the resultant
acceleration would depend on the 
 
 Answer
. . 1. initial speed of the object.
.
. . 2. initial position of the object.
.
. . 3. mass of the object.
.
. . 4. size of the object.
.
. 

2 points
Question 50[A]
. 
 Which of the following optical elements or combinations make up a Newtonian
telescope? 
 
 Answer
. . 1. one concave and one flat mirror
.
. . 2. two curved mirrors, one concave, the second convex
.
. . 3. one concave focusing mirror
.
. . 4. two lenses, to produce an image the correct way around
.