1. The star, other than the Sun, that is closest to Earth is
(a) Arcturus
(b) Polaris
(c) Proxima Centauri
(d) Sirius
2. Which of the following is not the English name of a constellation?
(a) The Arrow
(b) The Elephant
(c) The Furnace
(d) The Unicorn
3. Auroras are caused by
(a) ions in the solar wind colliding with the atmosphere
(b) reflections of sunlight from polar ice sheets
(c) sunlight reflected from ice crystals above the poles
(d) moonlight refracted over the polar horizon
4. Which of the following lists is in order of increasing distance from our solar system?
(a) the Orion Nebula, Omega Centauri, the Andromeda Galaxy, the Magellanic Clouds
(b) Omega Centauri,the Orion Nebula, the Andromeda Galaxy, the Magellanic Clouds
(c) the Orion Nebula, the Magellanic Clouds, Omega Centauri, the Andromeda Galaxy
(d) the Orion Nebula, Omega Centauri, the Magellanic Clouds, the Andromeda Galaxy
5. The star Polaris is in the constellation
(a) Casseopeia
(b) Draco
(c) Ursa Major
(d) Ursa Minor
6. In any given constellation
(a) All the stars are at approximately the same distance from us
(b) All the bright stars are at approximately the same distance from us and all the dim stars are farther off in the background
(c) The bright stars may be at varying distances from us but all the dim stars are farther off in the background
(d) none of the above
7. A Barlow lens changes the effective focal length of a telescope's primary in order to
(a) increase the magnification
(b) widen the field of view
(c) brighten the image
(d) stabilize atmospheric distortion
8. The Milky Way appears brighter in the direction of Sagittarius because
(a) there are fewer obscuring dark clouds there
(b) the many globular clusters there brighten it by reflection
(c) the center of the Galaxy is in that direction
(d) the bright stars of Orion wash out its appearance in the opposite direction
9. Charles Messier is best known for
(a) his discovery of 20 comets
(b) his catalog of objects that might be mistaken for comets
(c) his co-discovery of the planet Uranus
(d) his discovery of the asteroid Ceres
10. Which of the following is a correct statement?
(a) A meteorite is a piece of a meteoroid that has survived its plunge through the atmosphere and landed on the ground.
(b) A meteoroid is a piece of a meteorite that has survived its plunge through the atmosphere and landed on the ground.
(c) A meteoroid is a meteor that explodes on its way through the atmosphere.
(d) A meteoroid is a meteor that has completely burned up before reaching the ground.
11. The Moon's apogee is the point in its orbit where it is
(a) closest to Earth
(b) farthest from Earth
(c) opposite the Sun
(d) closest to the Sun
12. An annular eclipse might occur when
(a) the apparent diameter of the Moon is smaller than the apparent diameter of the Sun
(b) the solar corona is too large to be obscured by the Moon
(c) the shadow of the Earth is too small to completely obscure the Moon
(d) the shadow of the Earth obscures the Ring Nebula in Lyra
13. A meteor shower occurs when
(a) Earth passes through the orbit of a comet
(b) particles from an energetic solar flare hit the Earth's atmosphere
(c) an Earth-crossing asteroid rains particles onto Earth's atmosphere
(d) perturbations by Jupiter's gravitational field send asteroid belt material toward Earth
14. The Trapezium is
(a) another name for the bowl of the Big Dipper
(b) an asterism in the constellation Hercules
(c) another name for the Great Square of Pegasus
(d) a cluster of four stars in the Orion Nebula
15. The Virgo Cluster is
(a) one of the brightest globular clusters in the sky
(b) an association of stars of which Spica is the brightest member
(c) all the Messier objects from M84 to M100
(d) a supercluster of galaxies of which the Milky Way is an outlying member