1. Most proper star names are
a) Roman b) Latin c) Greek d) Arabic e) Egyptian
2. The modern constellations were invented
a) by the ancient Greeks
b) by medieval Egyptians
c) by Ptolemy
d) between AD 1600 and 1800
e) in the twentieth century
3. Which would ordinarily be the name of the brightest star in a
constellation?
a) Omega
b) Alpha
c) "1"
d) "a"
e) "A"
4. The Milky Way is made of
a) stars in the disk of our Galaxy
b) dust in the disk of our planetary system
c) a collection of comets in orbit
d) the northern lights
e) reflected moonlight
5. At what phase is the Moon 270 degrees to the east of the Sun as seen from
Earth?
a) new
b) first quarter
c) full
d) third quarter
e) gibbous
6. Earthlight on the Moon is best seen at which of the phases given below?
a) waning crescent
b) new
c) waxing gibbous
d) full
e) third quarter
7. On the average, the full Moon rises at
a) midnight b) noon c) 6 AM d) 6 PM e) 9 PM
8. When will you see a thin crescent Moon at midnight from Urbana?
a) the first day of the month
b) during a solar eclipse
c) when the Sun is full
d) the first day of the year
e) never
9. As the Moon moves through the stars it roughly follows the
a) ecliptic
b) celestial equator
c) celestial meridian
d) horizon
e) Milky Way
10. The Moon's phases are caused by
a) the Earth's shadow
b) the Sun's shadow
c) eclipses
d) our seeing different portions of the daylight side of the Moon as the
Moon orbits the Earth
e) the eccentricity of the Moon's orbit
11. At what phase is the Moon's far side in full daylight?
a) new Moon
b) full Moon
c) first quarter
d) third quarter
e) crescent
12. If the Moon is at its new phase, someone on the Moon would "see" the Earth
at
a) new
b) first quarter
c) full
d) third quarter
e) a gibbous phase
13. At what phase is it possible to see an eclipse of the Moon?
a) full
b) first quarter
c) new
d) third quarter
e) gibbous
14. You do not see a total eclipse of the Sun every month because
a) the Earth gets in the way
b) the Sun is too bright to see most eclipses
c) of the obliquity of the ecliptic
d) the Moon's orbit is tilted relative to the ecliptic
e) the Moon's nighttime side is turned away from the Earth
15. The brightness of the totally eclipsed Moon is controlled largely by
a) volcanic action on Earth
b) the solar corona
c) nothing
d) the Moon's phase
e) the Sun's phase
16. Very few people see any given total eclipse of the Sun because
a) the Moon's shadow spot is so small
b) the Sun is so bright
c) the Moon hides the eclipse
d) the Earth rotates so quickly
e) eclipses occur only in the arctic and antarctic
17. Total eclipses of the Sun take place
a) at full Moon near apogee
b) at new Moon near apogee
c) at full Moon near perigee
d) at new Moon near perigee
e) at sunset and sunrise
18. When Jupiter is in opposition to the Sun, it will rise about
a) noon b) midnight c) 6 AM d) 6 PM e) 3 PM
19. When Saturn is in retrograde, it will be moving mostly in what direction
relative to the background stars?
a) north
b) south
c) east
d) west
e) none of the above; it will be stationary
20. Which pair of planets can never be seen from Urbana at midnight?
a) Venus and Mars
b) Jupiter and Saturn
c) Neptune and Pluto
d) Uranus and Neptune
e) Venus and Mercury
21. Which planet can be seen in a crescent phase from Earth?
a) Mercury
b) Jupiter
c) Uranus
d) Neptune
e) Pluto
22. Which planet listed below has the longest sidereal orbital period?
a) Earth
b) Saturn
c) Uranus
d) Mars
e) Mercury
23. The orbit of Mars is an ellipse with the Sun at
a) one focus
b) the center
c) one focus and then the other
d) perihelion
e) aphelion
24. Who used Tycho's positions of planets to find the laws that describe
planetary motion?
a) Ptolemy b) Kepler c) Newton d) Galileo e) Tycho
25. What did Copernicus put at the center of the Solar System?
a) the Moon
b) the Sun
c) the Earth
d) himself
e) the center of the Galaxy