Question 1 (1 point)

Question

Ptolemy's contribution to early astronomy was:

a
He noticed the stars moving in patterns around the night sky, thus predicting the geocentric theory
b
He noticed the planets in space moving around each other, thus predicting the existence of planetary orbits
c
He noticed the planets orbiting the space around the sky, thus predicting the existence of multiple galaxies
d
He noticed the brightest star in the sky does not move during the year, thus predicting the stellar classification system
Question 2 (1 point)
Copernicus's precise astronomical observations and calcualtions helped him develop which revolutionary astronomical theory?

a
The Heliocentric Theory
b
The Big Bang Theory
c
The Stellar Expansion Theory
d
The Nebula Theory
Question 3 (1 point)
With the Heliocentric Theory, how did Copernicus explain the day and night cycle on the Earth?

a
The Sun is also rotating around the Earth at the same time
b
Sunlight is being reflected off of the Moon as it orbits around the Earth
c
The Sun rays interact with the atmosphere at different times of day, creating bright and dark times of the day
d
The Earth is actually rotating around on an axis, changing which side of the planet faces the Sun at any given time
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Some great astronomers of history

Aristotle - Aristotle was an ancient Greecian scientist and philospher. He noticed the motion of the stars moving in a circular path, so he developed the 'Geocentric Theory', which was the theory that the Earth was the center of the galaxy and all the stars and planets rotate around it.

Ptolemy - Ptolemy noticed the rotation of stars and planets in their moving paths. Thus, he put forth a new theory of circular orbiting paths along the rotation. This was the first theory that led towards the theory of orbits later on.

Copernicus - Copernicus used data from astronomical observations to put forth the 'Heliocentric Theory", which posisted that the Sun was the center of the solar system and the Earth and planets rotated around it instead. This became the accepted theory that is still used today.

Brahe - Brahe holds the record of gathering the most astronomical data for any astronomer using his naked eye. Brahe designed a proto-observatory with no telescope to look at the stars and record data about positions and locations of various stars and planets. A large amount of his data was used by future astronomers for their theories and scientific discoveries.

Galileo - Galileo invented the telescope in the 1700's, which is the most useful and common tool used by all astronomers today. Galileo used his telescope to discover the moutain ranges on Mars and discover the first moons of Jupiter

Question 4 (1 point)
Johannes Kepler's work in astronomy mainly dealt with what aspect of orbiting objects?

a
The masses of the objects in orbit
b
Their orbiting motion and the shape of the orbital paths
c
Their orbit sizes and the contraction and expansion of those orbits
d
The orbital speeds and how the masses affect their speeds
Question 5 (1 point)
What does it mean when an orbiting object is in 'perihelion'?

a
The orbiting object is closest to the object it is orbiting
b
The orbiting object is farthest away from the object it is orbiting
c
The orbiting object is approaching the largest location of the orbital path
d
The orbiting object is moving away from the largest location of the orbital path
Question 6 (1 point)
"All orbiting objects in the Solar System orbit in elliptical paths in which the Sun is one of the foci of the ellipse"

Which law is this?

a
Kepler's Third Law
b
Kepler's Second Law
c
Kepler's First Law
Question 7 (1 point)
Who was the astronomer who provided the majority of the data that Kepler used to develop his Laws of orbits?

a
Aristotle
b
Ptolemy
c
Galileo
d
Brahe
Question 8 (1 point)
Kepler's Third Law states that the square of the orbital period is equal to the cube of the length of the semi-major axis.

If an orbiting object has a period of 250 days, how long is the semi major axis?

a
10 km
b
25 km
c
35 km
d
40 km
Question 9 (1 point)
What is the physical reason as to why orbiting objects move slower in aphelion?

a
During aphelion, the object runs into friction with the space dust and gas that it moves through
b
During aphelion, the object is farthest away from the Sun, thus it experiences a lesser force of gravity
c
During aphelion, the object slows down due to gravitational pull from other objects closer than the Sun
d
During aphelion, the object is closer to the galactic center and thus is pulled away to prevent the increasing speed of the orbit
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Kepler's Three Laws govern the orbits of objects in the Solar System



Keplers 1st Law - All objects in the Solar System are orbiting in elliptical paths, in which the Sun is one of the foci of the ellipse

Keplers 2nd Law - All orbiting objects sweep out the same area in their orbital path during the same period of time

Keplers 3rd Law - The square of the orbital period is equal the cube of the length of the semi major axis

Question 10 (1 point)
What Instrument did Galileo invent that ended up proving Heliodentricism as the correct universal model.

a
Radio
b
Telescope
c
Spectrograph
d
Sun Dial

Answer 1

Here are the answers to the questions based on the information provided:

Question 1: Ptolemy's contribution to early astronomy was:

• a He noticed the stars moving in patterns around the night sky, thus predicting the geocentric theory.

Question 2: Copernicus's precise astronomical observations and calculations helped him develop which revolutionary astronomical theory?

• a The Heliocentric Theory.

Question 3: With the Heliocentric Theory, how did Copernicus explain the day and night cycle on the Earth?

• d The Earth is actually rotating around on an axis, changing which side of the planet faces the Sun at any given time.

Question 4: Johannes Kepler's work in astronomy mainly dealt with what aspect of orbiting objects?

• b Their orbiting motion and the shape of the orbital paths.

Question 5: What does it mean when an orbiting object is in 'perihelion'?

• a The orbiting object is closest to the object it is orbiting.

Question 6: "All orbiting objects in the Solar System orbit in elliptical paths in which the Sun is one of the foci of the ellipse." Which law is this?

• c Kepler's First Law.

Question 7: Who was the astronomer who provided the majority of the data that Kepler used to develop his Laws of orbits?

• d Brahe.

Question 8: Kepler's Third Law states that the square of the orbital period is equal to the cube of the length of the semi-major axis. If an orbiting object has a period of 250 days, how long is the semi major axis?

• The correct answer is not clearly provided in the original question details. However, Kepler's Third Law formula can be expressed as: \[T^2 = a^3\] where T is the period in years and a is the semi-major axis in Astronomical Units (AU). Since 250 days is approximately 0.684 years: \[ (0.684)^2 = a^3 \Rightarrow a \approx (0.684^2)^{1/3} \approx 0.88 \text{ AU} \] None of the provided options (10 km, 25 km, 35 km, 40 km) seem to directly correlate with this standard unit of measure used in the law. Hence, further clarification or a conversion might be needed.

Question 9: What is the physical reason as to why orbiting objects move slower in aphelion?

• b During aphelion, the object is farthest away from the Sun, thus it experiences a lesser force of gravity.

Question 10: What instrument did Galileo invent that ended up proving Heliocentricism as the correct universal model?

• b Telescope.

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