Cypress College ASTR 116 Homework
Astronomy 116, Homework Prologue (A): Charting the
Heavens. Due:
Print Last, First Name and date on the small Scantron in INK. Print
your last name in BIG BLOCK letters on the back of the Scantron.
Use a No. 2 pencil to fill out Scantron. Read the chapter.
Look at the videos and simulations in the CD-ROM. Answer all True/False and
Fill in the Blank questions. Then answer the following questions
and turn in your Scantron only. Choose the best answer.
1. How many astronomical units are there between the Earth and sun?
- a) One
- b) Ten
- c) One million
- d) Six trillion
2. How many stars are visible to the eye on a typical clear night at some
instant?
- a) a few hundred
- b) about 3000
- c) 50,000
- d) about 1 million
- e) 100 billion
3. Into how many constellations is the sky divided?
- a) 43
- b) 67
- c) 88
- d) 110
- e) 12
4. Polaris, the North Star, does not appear to move in the sky because:
- a) The stars are fixed relative to each other.
- b) It lies approximately over the northern axis of the Earth.
- c) It is too nearby for its motion to be discernible.
- d) It is located directly overhead for everyone on Earth.
5. Which of the following describes parallax?
- a) It is inversely proportional to an object's distance.
- b) It is an ancient method of finding distances, no longer useful
today.
- c) It can be used only with the most remote objects in space.
- d) It is a method of measuring the length of small objects, such
as pencils.
6. How long does a complete precession cycle take?
- a) 60,000 years
- b) 26,000 years
- c) 6000 years
- d) 4 years
7. The 23.5 degree tilt of the earth's axis causes
- a. precession
- b. parallax
- c. seasons
- d. eclipses.
8. The true rotation period of the earth (time to spin 360 degrees)
is
- a. solar day
- b. sidereal day
- c. holiday
- d. none of these.
9. A light year is a measure of
- a. time
- b. distance
- c. calories.
10. An observable consequence of the 24 hour rotation of the Earth is:
- a) The rising and setting of the Sun, Moon, and stars.
- b) The changing position and phases of the Moon.
- c) The changes in the visible constellations: seasonal changes.
- d) The precession of the Earth's axis.
11. The true size and shape of the Earth:
- a) Was never even approximated until relatively recent times.
- b) Was known with fair accuracy to certain early Greek thinkers.
- c) Still isn't known for certain
- d) Was first measured by Kepler.