Roughly speaking, stars cannot have a mass outside of which range

13 Jun Roughly speaking, stars cannot have a mass outside of which range

Question
Roughly speaking, stars cannot have a mass outside of which range?

0.5 to 5.0 solar mass
0.1 to 1.0 solar mass
0.08 to 100 solar mass
1 to 100 solar mass

Flag this Question Question 121 pts The HR diagram is a plot of _________.

Luminosity versus temperature
Luminosity versus mass
Temperature versus radius
Temperature versus mass
Radius versus mass

Flag this Question Question 131 pts On the HR diagram, what is the approximate position of the Sun?

bottom right
center
top left
bottom left
top right

Flag this Question Question 141 pts Perhaps the most fundamental problem in all of astronomy is the determination of distance to the various objects in the cosmos. Which of the following seems least reasonable regarding the various measurement techniques:

The Hubble Law relates the recessional speed of distant objects (measured with the Doppler Effect) to distance.
Hubble law is most useful for determining the distance to nearby objects, while parallax is most useful for the more distant objects.
We can determine the position of a star on the H-R diagram through spectral analysis and then figure out the distance by comparing absolute luminosity (from H-R diagram) to apparent brightness.
The distance to nearby stars can be determined by measuring parallax.
The distance to the planets in our solar can be determined by measuring the time for a radar signal to reach a planet, bounce off, and return.

Flag this Question Question 151 pts Which of the following correctly explains why we have not yet observed any white dwarfs derived from M stars:

Most M stars end up as neutron stars or black holes.
The lifetime of M stars is longer than the age of the universe.
Most M stars are located near the edge of the universe, beyond the visible horizon.
Most M stars are members of a binary system, and the white dwarf would be obscured by the glare of the more massive companion.
White dwarfs are too dim to be observed with currently available techniques.

Flag this Question Question 161 pts Approximately what temperature is required to ignite fusion of helium in our Sun?

6 thousand K
One million K
100 million K
Ten Million K
One billion K

Flag this Question Question 171 pts Nearly all the elements found in our environment were formed predominantly during the course of stellar evolution. The major exceptions are:

Iron and nickel
Silver and gold
Hydrogen and helium
Oxygen and carbon
Oxygen and nitrogen

Flag this Question Question 181 pts Which of the following is the least likely reason that astronomers consider supernova 1987A so important?

The event confirmed theoretical predictions that much of the energy of a supernova explosion is emitted in the form of neutrinos.
Supernova 1987A was the first observable supernova in the Milky Way since the invention of the telescope.
Because supernova 1987A was relatively close and very little dust intervenes between us and the Large Magellanic Cloud, astronomers were able to figure out its total energy output with pretty good accuracy.
The neutrinos preceded the light because they escaped during the collapse, whereas the first light of the explosion was emitted only after the supernova shock had plowed through the body of the star to the surface.
Supernova 1987A represented the first time astronomers had observed a star and knew its basic properties before it exploded.

Flag this Question Question 191 pts Skip to question text. Until recently, the term “planet” had no clearcut definition. In August of 2006, leading astronomers established new guidelines and declared that Pluto is no longer a planet. Which of the following is either false or least consistent with the new guidelines?

Pluto is the largest known object in the Kuiper belt.
A planet must have cleared the neighborhood around its orbit.
Pluto is automatically disqualified from being a planet because its oblong orbit overlaps with Neptune’s.
A planet must have sufficient mass for its self-gravity to overcome rigid body forces so that it assumes a nearly round shape.
Pluto and the asteroid Ceres are both now classified as dwarf planets.

Flag this Question Question 201 pts Which planet in our solar system has a mean density of less than that of water?

Uranus
Neptune
Saturn
Jupiter
Pluto

Flag this Question Question 211 pts Which of the following is least reasonable regarding the magnitude scale:

The numerical difference between a star’s absolute and apparent magnitudes is a measure of the distance to the star.
If the Sun were moved to a distance of 10 parsecs, it would not be visible to the naked eye.
The fact that Sun’s absolute magnitude of 4.8 is greater than the Sun’s apparent magnitude of -27 implies that the Sun is a lot closer than 10 parsecs.
Apparent magnitude measures a star’s apparent brightness when viewed at the star’s actual distance from the observer.
A star’s absolute magnitude is its apparent magnitude when viewed from a distance of 10 parsecs.

Flag this Question Question 221 pts According to scientists, the estimated age of the Earth and solar system is about _____ years.

100 million
5 million
4.6 billion
6 thousand
10 thousand

Flag this Question Question 231 pts The most extreme tides (spring tides) on planet Earth occur during which phase of the moon?

new
both new and full
full
first quarter
both first quarter and third quarter
third quarter

Flag this Question Question 241 pts What factor caused different planets to form out of different types of material?

The angular momentum of the forming planet.
The variation in temperature throughout the solar nebula.
The quantity of dust particles in the solar nebula.
All of these.
None of these.

Flag this Question Question 251 pts The second most abundant element in the solar system is

helium
iron
hydrogen
oxygen
carbon

Flag this Question Question 261 pts In light of modern solar system theory, why do the orbits of the planets all lie in nearly the same plane?

The angular momentum of the Solar system was kept to a minimum this way.
The early solar nebula flattened into a disk.
This happened purely by chance.
The Sun’s gravity forced them into these orbits.

Flag this Question Question 271 pts Which of the following is least reasonable regarding Trojan asteroids?

Trojan asteroids are located in either of two gravitationally stable regions within the orbit of Jupiter, about 120° apart.
Trojan asteroids are those asteroids in the asteroid belt which are hidden from view by Mars.
Trojan asteroids are kept in orbit primarily by the gravitational effects of Jupiter and the Sun.
Trojan asteroids pose much less danger to us than Earth-crossing asteroids.
Trojan asteroids constitute a small minority of all the known asteroids.

Flag this Question Question 281 pts Which of the following is least reasonable regarding the “water hole”?

It consists of frequencies which are greater than the frequencies of atmospheric emissions.
It relates to the natural frequencies of vibration of hydroxyl (OH) and hydrogen (H), respectively.
It occurs in that part of the electromagnetic spectrum where the galactic “noise” from stars and interstellar clouds is minimized.
It is considered the “electromagnetic oasis” for interstellar communication.
It corresponds to wavelengths in the 18-21 cm range.

Flag this Question Question 291 pts At present, what is the primary way that the search for extraterrestrial intelligence (SETI) is carried out?

by analyzing high-resolution images of nearby stars in search of evidence of structures that could not have developed naturally
by using radio telescopes to search for signals from extraterrestrial civilizations
by searching for planets around distant stars
by using large X-ray telescopes to search for signals from extraterrestrial civilizations
by seeking access to the secret records and alien corpses kept at Area 51

Flag this Question Question 301 pts Which of the following is least reasonable regarding the difficulty in contacting extraterrestrial life using space flight and radio communication.

Space flight to the nearest star would take thousands of years with current technology.
Even if another intelligent civilization is within a few hundred light-years of us, conversations would be very slow with a turnaround time of decades or even centuries.
The spacecraft that NASA sent to Proxima Centauri a few years ago should be approaching its target within a decade or two, depending on solar wind conditions.
Earth has been broadcasting at radio wavelengths since the 1930’s, so any civilization within a radius of 70 light-years or so could have received the broadcast by now.
Without some major breakthrough, interstellar space flight is totally impractical.

Flag this Question Question 311 pts In 1974, a radio message was sent out from the Arecibo observatory in Puerto Rico. Approximately, how far has this message gotten?

almost to the center of the Milky Way
just beyond our Solar System
just a miniscule fraction of the distance across the Milky Way
beyond the Milky Way, to the Andromeda galaxy
not even to the nearest stars

Flag this Question Question 321 pts Why do we think we would be able to decode a message deliberately sent to us by an alien civilization?

The message will probably be in video format, allowing us to watch it even without knowing the alien language.
We can assume that aliens will also have 10 fingers and 10 toes and therefore that they can send a message that relies on this fact.
They undoubtedly have already received our television broadcasts and would therefore be likely to send the message in English.
The aliens presumably know the same laws of mathematics and physics as we do and therefore could develop a simple code based on these laws.

Flag this Question Question 331 pts The Voyager I and II spacecraft were launched in the 1970s, visited the Jovian planets in the 1980s, and are currently leaving the solar system. When will they reach the nearest stars?

in a few centuries
tens of thousands of years from now
in a few decades
millions of years from now
billions of years from now

Flag this Question Question 341 pts Which of the following seems least reasonable regarding life on Earth?

There is much scientific evidence suggesting that all creatures living on Earth today appear to have evolved from a common ancestor.
Louis Pasteur discredited the concept of spontaneous generation by demonstrating that even bacteria and other microorganisms arise from parents resembling themselves.
There is ample physical evidence that the earliest life forms on Earth were multicellular creatures, perhaps resembling some of our primitive fish.
When the earth formed some 4.6 billion years ago, it was a lifeless, inhospitable place.
Before the mid-17th century, most people believed that God had created humankind and other higher organisms and that insects, frogs, and other small creatures could arise spontaneously in mud or decaying matter
About billion years into its development, the Earth it was teeming with organisms resembling blue-green algae.

Flag this Question Question 351 pts When did the extinction of the dinosaurs occur?

540 million years ago
about 2 billion years ago
65 million years ago
about 3.5 billion years ago
less than 1 million years ago

Flag this Question Question 361 pts In what ways is Earth different from the other terrestrial planets?

Life can be found almost everywhere.
Most of its surface is covered with liquid water.
It has oxygen in its atmosphere.
Its lithosphere is broken into plates that move around.
All of the above are true.

Flag this Question Question 371 pts The fossil record of life on Earth goes back about ____ years.

4 million
10,000
10 billion
3.5 billion
300,000

Flag this Question Question 381 pts Which of the following was not one of the original ingredients in Urey and Miller’s “primordial soup”?

water
carbon dioxide
ammonia
oxygen
methane

Flag this Question Question 391 pts Which objects inside the solar system are capable of colliding with the Earth and are known to contain large amounts of organic material?

Comets
Trojan asteroids
Earth-crossing asteroids
Meteors
Moonlets

Flag this Question Question 401 pts Which of the following is a good summary of what most astronomers think about UFO reports?

It is now clearly established that alien spacecraft have crashed on Earth; we have the bodies of the aliens who flew them here.
UFO’s have kidnapped a number of Earth inhabitants, including at least one well-known astronomer; her reports convinced other scientists that UFO’s are indeed alien spaceships.
While no UFO’s have landed, we have overheard communications between them with our radio surveys and thus have evidence that there are intelligent creatures aboard them.
UFO’s are now known to come from the planet Mars, the only other planet that we know has life on it.
There is currently no scientific evidence that UFO reports have anything to do with life outside the Earth.

Flag this Question Question 411 pts Which of the following is not considered a likely solution to the question of why we are not currently aware of an extraterrestrial civilization?

There is no civilization because civilizations are not common.
The civilization is probably undetectable to us because it makes use of technologies that do not obey the known laws of physics.
There is no galactic civilization because civilizations do not leave their home worlds.
There is no civilization because most civilizations destroy themselves before achieving interstellar travel.
The civilization is deliberately avoiding contact with us.

Flag this Question Question 421 pts Globular clusters contain no stars more massive than the Sun. Which of the following seems like the least reasonable implication of this observation?

Globular clusters are very old.
Globular clusters are very young.
Only the low-mass stars are still “alive” in the clusters.
Many red giants can probably be found in globular clusters.
The very massive stars in the globular clusters have already burnt out.

Flag this Question Question 431 pts What important molecules for life were found in the first Urey-Miller experiment?

Simple DNA.
Fatty acids.
Amino acids.
Simple RNA.
Proteins.

Flag this Question Question 441 pts What is a planetary nebula?

The ejected envelope of a red giant surrounding a stellar core remnant.
The disc of gas and dust surrounding a young star that will soon form a solar system.
A solar system obliterated by a supernova explosion.
A planet surrounded by a glowing shell of gas.
A type of young, medium mass star.

Flag this Question Question 451 pts How often can a star go supernova?

Many times, depending on the size of its companion star.
Twice, the first time when it runs out hydrogen, and the second time when it runs out of iron.
Once, early in its evolution.
Once, late in its evolution.
At various times, depending on the composition of the star.

Flag this Question Question 461 pts Although Mars and Mercury are nearly equal in size, Mars has more of an atmosphere because Mars is

cooler
more dense
smaller
hotter

Flag this Question Question 471 pts What is the defining property of the Trojan asteroids?

They have orbits that cross the orbit of the Earth.
They have orbits beyond Neptune.
They have a composition that is the most primitive of all asteroids.
They are located within the orbit of Jupiter, 60 degrees ahead of or behind it.
They were all named by the early Greeks.

Flag this Question Question 481 pts Which of the following has given us direct information about the age of the solar system?

Mars.
Meteorites.
The Sun.
Jupiter.

Flag this Question Question 491 pts Which of the following is the most reasonable statement regarding a neutron star?

It consists mostly or entirely of neutrinos.
The most common component of a neutron star is hydrogen.
The star will turn into white dwarf.
All its electrons have been combined with protons.
It consists of neutrons and protons floating in a sea of electrons.

Flag this Question Question 501 pts Which of the following is most likely to occur when mass is continually added to a 1.5 solar mass neutron star?

The star’s radius will increase.
The star will rejoin the main sequence.
The star will turn into white dwarf.
The star will eventually become a black hole.
The star will erupt as a supernova.

Flag this Question Question 511 pts Which of the following are not electromagnetic waves?

Radio waves.
Gamma rays.
Light waves.
Sound waves.
X-rays.

Flag this Question Question 521 pts Which of the following is least reasonable regarding Supernova 1987A.

It occurred around 170,000 light-years away in the neighboring galaxy known as the Large Magellanic Cloud.
It occurred in modern times and within easy reach of large telescopes.
It released a burst of neutrinos which were detected shortly after the visible light reached our telescopes.
Because the supernova occurred below the northern horizon, the neutrinos from SN1987A had to pass through the Earth before reaching the detectors.
Its parent star had been observed previously, so the supernova helped confirm our theories about stellar evolution.
It was the most recent naked-eye supernova.

Flag this Question Question 531 pts Suppose you’re experimenting with the spectrum produced by heated hydrogen gas. If you double the quantity of hydrogen and examine the resulting spectral lines, what is most likely to have changed?

The number of lines seen.
The frequencies of the lines.
The intensity of the lines.
The pattern made by the lines.
The wavelengths of the lines.

Flag this Question Question 541 pts How might the most commonly occurring stars be described?

B-type main sequence stars
F-type giants
M-type main sequence stars
G-type main sequence stars
M-type giants
K-type giants

Flag this Question Question 551 pts What is the size of a typical white dwarf?

1.0 solar radii
0.5 solar radii
0.1 solar radii (roughly the size of Jupiter)
0.01 solar radii (roughly the size of Earth)
5 solar radii

Flag this Question Question 561 pts What star has the largest stellar parallax as measured from opposite ends of the Earth’s orbit about the Sun?

Sirius
The Sun
Barnard’s star
Proxima Centauri
Alpha Centauri

Flag this Question Question 571 pts Which of the following was the least likely objective of the Urey-Miller experiment?

To demonstrate that oxygen can be produced by plants.
To recreate the conditions of the Earth before life existed and produce the molecules necessary for life from primordial inorganic matter (water, methane, ammonia, and carbon dioxide).
To build a case (though not necessarily prove) that life can originate from nonliving matter through natural means.
To demonstrate that organic molecules like amino acids (building blocks of protein) and nucleotide bases (building blocks of DNA) do not necessarily originate only from living matter.
To demonstrate that lightning may have been the essential energy source (early in Earth’s evolution) in the production of molecules essential for life.

Flag this Question Question 581 pts The Drake equation tells us that the number of technological civilizations in our Galaxy at this time is:

About 100,000.
About 14 billion.
About 200 billion.
It cannot predict this number at this time.
About 6,000.
About 1 million.
Somewhere in the range 1-10.

Flag this Question Question 591 pts Life on Earth is considered by many scientists to have evolved because of a string of very fortunate events. Which of the following is least likely to have been a contributing factor?

Dominant tidal effects by the Sun
Well-positioned Jupiter
Enough time for evolution
Moon stabilizes tilt
Safe radiation levels

Flag this Question Question 601 pts Francesco Redi (1626–1697) was an Italian physician who is perhaps best known for his 1668 experiment with flies. Which of the following is least consistent with this experiment?

The experiment is regarded as one of the first steps in refuting “spontaneous generation” — a theory also known as Aristotelian abiogenesis.
Redi’s experiment with flies did not completely disprove spontaneous generation because it could be argued (and it was) that biogenesis (i.e., life from life) must be true for large organisms like flies, but that bacteria could still arise spontaneously.
Redi established that rotten meat does not produce flies.
Redi demonstrated that given enough time and air, maggots (the larvae of flies) can arise directly from rotten meat.
The gauze that Redi used to cover one of the jars allowed the flies to smell the rotten meat inside but prevented them from depositing their eggs on the meat.

Flag this Question Question 611 pts Skip to question text. In a globular cluster, astronomers (someday) discover a star with the same mass as our Sun, but consisting entirely of hydrogen and helium. Is this star a good place to point our SETI antennas and search for radio signals from an advanced civilization?

No, because such a star (and any planets around it) would not have the heavier elements (carbon, nitrogen, oxygen, etc.) that we believe are necessary to start life as we know it.
Yes, because globular clusters are among the closest star clusters to us, so that they would be easy to search for radio signals.
Yes, because we have already found radio signals from another civilization living near a star in a globular cluster.
No, because such a star would most likely not have a stable (main-sequence) stage that is long enough for a technological civilization to develop.
Yes, because such a star is probably old and a technological civilization will have had a long time to evolve and develop there.

Flag this Question Question 621 pts The least extreme tides (neap tides) on planet Earth occur during which moon phase?

third quarter only
new only
first quarter only
both first quarter and third quarter
full only
both new and full

Flag this Question Question 631 pts Skip to question text. A friend of yours (who has not had the benefit of an astronomy course) tells you about a report he has read in a tabloid newspaper. He claims that on the dark side of the Moon (the side that never receives any sunlight), there is a secret base of aliens who cannot stand light and send UFO’s to Earth under the cover of darkness. What is the scientific error in this story?

All sides of the Moon are illuminated by sunlight in the course of a month; there is no dark side.
While we have some credible reports of UFO landings, it is difficult to imagine that advanced aliens would be afraid of the light.
The dark side of the Moon is the one that faces the Earth and our telescopes would have spotted such a base.
This seems to be a perfectly reasonable story.
The space program of the world’s countries has landed thousands of spacecraft on the dark side of the Moon.
Since the moon is turning, we see all sides of it from Earth in the course of a month.

Flag this Question Question 641 pts Which of the following is currently considered the most rational way to search for extraterrestrial intelligence (SETI)?

by using large X-ray telescopes to search for signals from extraterrestrial civilizations
by using radio telescopes to search for signals from extraterrestrial civilizations
by seeking access to the secret records and alien corpses kept at Area 51
by analyzing high-resolution images of nearby stars in search of evidence of structures that could not have developed naturally
by interviewing aliens responsible for creating the face on Mars
by searching for Jupiter-like planets around distant stars

Flag this Question Question 651 pts Which forms of electromagnetic radiation most readily penetrate the Earth’s atmosphere:

gamma rays and x-rays
visible light and radio waves
x-rays and visible light
x-rays and radio waves
gamma rays and radio waves

Flag this Question Question 661 pts Skip to question text. The astronomical object known as the Crab Nebula is the remnant of an exploded star. The explosion was seen by the Chinese in A.D. 1054. Given that the Crab Nebula is about 3500 light-years away from Earth, approximately when did the star actually explode?

around 4500 B.C.
several million years ago
about 1000 years after the Big Bang
around 2400 B.C.
several billion years ago

Flag this Question Question 671 pts Which of the following best characterizes the Fermi Paradox?

If intelligent life is common out there, how come they have not contacted us?
If the Copernican principle applies, why are we not in the middle of the Galaxy?
If most of the universe is dark matter and dark energy, why are we made of ordinary matter?
If the universe is expanding, why is our solar system not getting bigger also?