Question 1

As a planet moves away from aphelion,how is its orbital velocity changing with time?

Accepted Answer

Its veloci

Question 2

According to Newton,satellites orbit Earth because:

Accepted Answer

A)  of gravitational forces. 
B)  circular motion is natural. 
C)  of inertia. 
D)  of free-fall. 
A)  of gravitational forces. 
B)  circular motion is natural. 
C)  of inertia. 
D)  of free-fall.

Question 3

The Ptolemaic and Copernican models differed in all of the following respects EXCEPT the:

Accepted Answer

A)  the appearance of epicycles. 
B)  their explanation for retrograde motion. 
C)  the central object in the planetary system. 
D)  the rotation of Earth. 
A)  the appearance of epicycles. 
B)  their explanation for retrograde motion. 
C)  the central object in the planetary system. 
D)  the rotation of Earth.

Question 4

The orbital periods of planets ________ with their average distance from the Sun.

Accepted Answer

A)  decrease 
B)  remain constant 
C)  increase 
D)  vary irregularly 
A)  decrease 
B)  remain constant 
C)  increase 
D)  vary irregularly

Question 5

Which of the following correctly characterizes the velocity and angular momentum of a planet orbiting the Sun?

Accepted Answer

A)  The velocity is maximum at aphelion, while the angular momentum is maximum at perihelion. 
B)  The velocity and angular momentum are both maximum at perihelion. 
C)  The velocity and angular momentum are constant throughout the orbit. 
D)  The velocity is maximum at perihelion, while the angular momentum is constant throughout the orbit. 
A)  The velocity is maximum at aphelion, while the angular momentum is maximum at perihelion. 
B)  The velocity and angular momentum are both maximum at perihelion. 
C)  The velocity and angular momentum are constant throughout the orbit. 
D)  The velocity is maximum at perihelion, while the angular momentum is constant throughout the orbit.

Question 6

If you kick a concrete wall hard,your foot will hurt.Explain this in terms of Newton's laws of motion.

Accepted Answer

For every force,there is an eq

Question 7

A physicist launches two asteroids in circular orbits with identical angular momenta.Asteroid A's orbit has twice the radius of Asteroid B's orbit.How do their orbital velocities compare to each other?

Accepted Answer

A)  Asteroid A moves faster than Asteroid B. 
B)  Asteroid A moves slower than Asteroid B. 
C)  Asteroid A moves at the same speed as Asteroid B. 
D)  The velocities of both asteroids vary along their orbits. 
A)  Asteroid A moves faster than Asteroid B. 
B)  Asteroid A moves slower than Asteroid B. 
C)  Asteroid A moves at the same speed as Asteroid B. 
D)  The velocities of both asteroids vary along their orbits.

Question 8

Suppose Earth and Jupiter move along their orbits in the following sequence.What would we observe?

Accepted Answer

A)  an eclipse 
B)  retrograde motion 
C)  strong tides 
D)  a transit 
A)  an eclipse 
B)  retrograde motion 
C)  strong tides 
D)  a transit

Question 9

The Moon has about 1% of Earth's mass,and its radius is about 1/4 as large as Earth's.How does the weight of a bowling ball on the Moon's surface compare to its weight on Earth's surface?

Accepted Answer

The gravitational ac

Question 10

What was the first observation to challenge Aristotle's conception of perfect and unchanging heavens?

Accepted Answer

A)  phases of the Moon 
B)  craters on the Moon 
C)  retrograde motion 
D)  Tycho's supernova 
A)  phases of the Moon 
B)  craters on the Moon 
C)  retrograde motion 
D)  Tycho's supernova

Question 11

Why do astronauts feel "weightless" inside the International Space Station?

Accepted Answer

A)  They are so far from Earth that the gravitational force is very small. 
B)  They follow the same orbit as the space station. 
C)  The space station rotates to cancel the effect of gravity. 
D)  The space station is continually accelerating away from Earth. 
A)  They are so far from Earth that the gravitational force is very small. 
B)  They follow the same orbit as the space station. 
C)  The space station rotates to cancel the effect of gravity. 
D)  The space station is continually accelerating away from Earth.

Question 12

Consider the two ellipses shown below.How are they related to each other?

Accepted Answer

A)  Ellipse A has a larger eccentricity and smaller semiminor axis than Ellipse B. 
B)  Ellipse A has a larger eccentricity and larger semiminor axis than Ellipse B. 
C)  Ellipse A has a smaller eccentricity and smaller semiminor axis than Ellipse B. 
D)  Ellipse A has a smaller eccentricity and larger semiminor axis than Ellipse B. 
A)  Ellipse A has a larger eccentricity and smaller semiminor axis than Ellipse B. 
B)  Ellipse A has a larger eccentricity and larger semiminor axis than Ellipse B. 
C)  Ellipse A has a smaller eccentricity and smaller semiminor axis than Ellipse B. 
D)  Ellipse A has a smaller eccentricity and larger semiminor axis than Ellipse B.

Question 13

Both the Ptolemaic and Copernican models required equants.What assumption and observed phenomena necessitated these additions?

Accepted Answer

Both models assumed uniform ci

Question 14

Planet A has twice the mass of planet B.Experiments determine that a bowling ball on planet A weighs eight times as much as it does on planet B.Relative to the radius of planet B,what is the radius of planet A?

Accepted Answer

A)  Planet A has four times the radius of planet B. 
B)  Planet A has twice the radius of planet B. 
C)  Planet A has the same radius as planet B. 
D)  Planet A has half the radius of planet B. 
A)  Planet A has four times the radius of planet B. 
B)  Planet A has twice the radius of planet B. 
C)  Planet A has the same radius as planet B. 
D)  Planet A has half the radius of planet B.

Question 15

Which of the following people was the first to introduce experimental methods to science?

Accepted Answer

A)  Aristotle 
B)  Nicolaus Copernicus 
C)  Galileo Galilei 
D)  Isaac Newton 
A)  Aristotle 
B)  Nicolaus Copernicus 
C)  Galileo Galilei 
D)  Isaac Newton

Question 16

Who was the first astronomer to discover sunspots?

Accepted Answer

A)  Tycho Brahe 
B)  Galileo Galilei 
C)  Isaac Newton 
D)  William Herschel 
A)  Tycho Brahe 
B)  Galileo Galilei 
C)  Isaac Newton 
D)  William Herschel

Question 17

The astronomer who formulated the three general laws of planetary motion was:

Accepted Answer

A)  Nicolaus Copernicus. 
B)  Johannes Kepler. 
C)  Galileo Galilei. 
D)  Isaac Newton. 
A)  Nicolaus Copernicus. 
B)  Johannes Kepler. 
C)  Galileo Galilei. 
D)  Isaac Newton.

Question 18

A ball is launched upward from a baseball field.Assuming that it begins with an upward velocity of 10.5 m/s,what is its speed after three seconds have elapsed? (The acceleration due to gravity on Earth is 9.8 m/s².)

Accepted Answer

A)  0.7 m/s 
B)  10.5 m/s 
C)  18.9 m/s 
D)  39.9 m/s 
A)  0.7 m/s 
B)  10.5 m/s 
C)  18.9 m/s 
D)  39.9 m/s

Question 19

When planets undergo retrograde motion,they are also brighter on the sky than usual.How does the Copernican model account for this phenomenon?

Accepted Answer

As Earth catches and passes th

Question 20

Galileo observed Venus to attain a full phase.Why did this disprove the geocentric model?

Accepted Answer

Venus always remains near the

As a planet moves away from aphelion,how is its orbital velocity changing with time?

According to Newton,satellites orbit Earth because:

The Ptolemaic and Copernican models differed in all of the following respects EXCEPT the:

The orbital periods of planets ________ with their average distance from the Sun.

Which of the following correctly characterizes the velocity and angular momentum of a planet orbiting the Sun?

If you kick a concrete wall hard,your foot will hurt.Explain this in terms of Newton's laws of motion.

A physicist launches two asteroids in circular orbits with identical angular momenta.Asteroid A's orbit has twice the radius of Asteroid B's orbit.How do their orbital velocities compare to each other?

Suppose Earth and Jupiter move along their orbits in the following sequence.What would we observe?

The Moon has about 1% of Earth's mass,and its radius is about 1/4 as large as Earth's.How does the weight of a bowling ball on the Moon's surface compare to its weight on Earth's surface?

What was the first observation to challenge Aristotle's conception of perfect and unchanging heavens?

Why do astronauts feel "weightless" inside the International Space Station?

Consider the two ellipses shown below.How are they related to each other?

Both the Ptolemaic and Copernican models required equants.What assumption and observed phenomena necessitated these additions?

Planet A has twice the mass of planet B.Experiments determine that a bowling ball on planet A weighs eight times as much as it does on planet B.Relative to the radius of planet B,what is the radius of planet A?

Which of the following people was the first to introduce experimental methods to science?

Who was the first astronomer to discover sunspots?

The astronomer who formulated the three general laws of planetary motion was:

A ball is launched upward from a baseball field.Assuming that it begins with an upward velocity of 10.5 m/s,what is its speed after three seconds have elapsed? (The acceleration due to gravity on Earth is 9.8 m/s².)

When planets undergo retrograde motion,they are also brighter on the sky than usual.How does the Copernican model account for this phenomenon?

Galileo observed Venus to attain a full phase.Why did this disprove the geocentric model?

Getting Started: Science, astronomy, and Being Human

A Universe Made, a Universe Discovered

A Universe of Universal Laws

The Architecture and Birth of Planetary Systems

Home Base: Earth and Moon

Sibling Worlds: Mercury, Venus, and Mars

Gas, ice, and Stone: the Outer Planets

Life and the Search for Habitable Worlds

The Sun As a Star

Measuring the Stars: the Main Sequence and Its Meaning

Nursery of the Stars: the Interstellar Medium and Star Formation

To the Graveyard of Stars: the End Points of Stellar Evolution

Down the Rabbit Hole: Relativity and Black Holes

Our City of Stars: the Milky Way

A Universe of Galaxies

The Cosmic Web: the Large-Scale Structure of the Universe

Cosmology

Filters

Exam 3: A Universe of Universal Laws

As a planet moves away from aphelion,how is its orbital velocity changing with time?

According to Newton,satellites orbit Earth because:

The Ptolemaic and Copernican models differed in all of the following respects EXCEPT the:

The orbital periods of planets ________ with their average distance from the Sun.

Which of the following correctly characterizes the velocity and angular momentum of a planet orbiting the Sun?

If you kick a concrete wall hard,your foot will hurt.Explain this in terms of Newton's laws of motion.

A physicist launches two asteroids in circular orbits with identical angular momenta.Asteroid A's orbit has twice the radius of Asteroid B's orbit.How do their orbital velocities compare to each other?

Suppose Earth and Jupiter move along their orbits in the following sequence.What would we observe?

The Moon has about 1% of Earth's mass,and its radius is about 1/4 as large as Earth's.How does the weight of a bowling ball on the Moon's surface compare to its weight on Earth's surface?

What was the first observation to challenge Aristotle's conception of perfect and unchanging heavens?

Why do astronauts feel "weightless" inside the International Space Station?

Consider the two ellipses shown below.How are they related to each other?

Both the Ptolemaic and Copernican models required equants.What assumption and observed phenomena necessitated these additions?

Planet A has twice the mass of planet B.Experiments determine that a bowling ball on planet A weighs eight times as much as it does on planet B.Relative to the radius of planet B,what is the radius of planet A?

Which of the following people was the first to introduce experimental methods to science?

Who was the first astronomer to discover sunspots?

The astronomer who formulated the three general laws of planetary motion was:

A ball is launched upward from a baseball field.Assuming that it begins with an upward velocity of 10.5 m/s,what is its speed after three seconds have elapsed? (The acceleration due to gravity on Earth is 9.8 m/s².)

When planets undergo retrograde motion,they are also brighter on the sky than usual.How does the Copernican model account for this phenomenon?

Galileo observed Venus to attain a full phase.Why did this disprove the geocentric model?

Getting Started: Science, astronomy, and Being Human

A Universe Made, a Universe Discovered

A Universe of Universal Laws

The Architecture and Birth of Planetary Systems

Home Base: Earth and Moon

Sibling Worlds: Mercury, Venus, and Mars

Gas, ice, and Stone: the Outer Planets

Life and the Search for Habitable Worlds

The Sun As a Star

Measuring the Stars: the Main Sequence and Its Meaning

Nursery of the Stars: the Interstellar Medium and Star Formation

To the Graveyard of Stars: the End Points of Stellar Evolution

Down the Rabbit Hole: Relativity and Black Holes

Our City of Stars: the Milky Way

A Universe of Galaxies

The Cosmic Web: the Large-Scale Structure of the Universe

Cosmology

Filters