Q&A Hero

Q: If Taurus is now rising at sunset, which constellation will rise at sunset next month? A) Scorpius B) Aquarius C) Gemini D) Aries E) Pisces

Q: If Scorpius is now prominent in the summer sky, in 13,000 years it will be best seen A) at the same season; the heavens do not change. B) in the autumn. C) in the winter sky. D) in the spring sky. E) It will not be visible then at all. All of its stars will have vanished by then.

Q: The star Thuban in Draco A) lies as the center of the precession cycle. B) was an excellent north pole star in 3,000 BC. C) is brighter than Polaris. D) lies halfway between the bowls of the Big and Little Dippers. E) is used to locate the vernal equinox.

Q: The interval from new Moon to first quarter is about a(n) A) hour. B) day. C) week. D) month. E) year.

Q: The time for the Moon to orbit Earth, relative to the stars is A) 23 hours, 56 minutes. B) about 7 days. C) 27.3 days. D) 29.5 days. E) 18 years, 11.3 days.

Q: If you are in the Moon's umbral shadow, then you are witnessing A) nighttime. B) a total solar eclipse. C) a total lunar eclipse. D) a partial solar eclipse. E) some kind of lunar eclipse.

Q: What will occur when the full moon is on the ecliptic? A) a total lunar eclipse B) a total solar eclipse C) a partial solar eclipse D) an annular lunar eclipse E) a partial lunar eclipse if the Moon is at perigee

Q: A solar eclipse can only happen during a A) new moon. B) solstice. C) first quarter moon. D) full moon. E) perihelion passage of the Sun.

Q: If new moon fell on March 2nd, what is the Moon's phase on March 14th? A) waxing crescent B) first quarter C) waxing gibbous D) full E) waning crescent

Q: If the Moon appears half lit, and is almost overhead about 6:00 AM, its phase is A) waxing crescent. B) first quarter. C) full. D) third quarter. E) waning crescent.

Q: The synodic month is A) 29.5 days. B) about two days shorter than the sidereal month. C) based on the Moon's position relative to the stars. D) the basis of the year we use in our modern calendar. E) caused by both the Earth's and Moon's rotations.

Q: If you are in the Earth's umbra on the Earth's surface, then A) it must be a total solar eclipse. B) it must be a lunar eclipse of some type. C) it is night time. D) the Sun is always visible. E) the Moon is always visible.

Q: In an annular eclipse, A) the Sun is totally blocked by the Moon. B) the Moon is totally blocked by the Earth. C) the Moon appears as a thin, bright ring. D) the Sun appears as a thin, bright ring. E) the Sun is partially blocked by the Earth.

Q: The greatest distance above or below the ecliptic the Moon can move is A) 5.2 degrees. B) 23.5 degrees. C) 27.3 degrees. D) 29.5 degrees. E) 30 degrees.

Q: The star Wolf 1061 has a parallax of 2.34 arc seconds, while the star Ross 652 has a parallax of 1.70 arc seconds. What can you correctly conclude? A) Both stars are outside the Milky Way galaxy. B) Wolf 1061 must have a larger proper motion than Ross 652. C) Ross 652 must have a larger proper motion than Wolf 1061. D) Ross 652 is closer to Earth than Wolf 1061. E) Wolf 1061 is closer to Earth than Ross 652.

Q: Drawing on Eratosthenes' method, if two observers are due north and south of each other and are separated by 400 km, what is the circumference of their spherical world if they see the same star on their meridian at altitudes of 23 degrees and 47 degrees respectively, and at the exact same time? A) 2,000 km B) 4,000 km C) 6,000 km D) 8,000 km E) 12,000 km

Q: In the scientific method, it is not necessary to test your theory.

Q: Increasing the baseline will increase the parallax angle.

Q: The parallax shift for all stars is very small.

Q: The larger the parallax shift, the closer an object is to us.

Q: A total solar eclipse will only occur when the new moon is both on the ecliptic and at its greatest distance from Earth.

Q: Eighteen days past new moon, the Moon's phase is waning gibbous.

Q: There is a solar eclipse of some kind every new moon.

Q: If we are the Moon's penumbra, then we will see a partial lunar eclipse.

Q: Only people in the Moon's umbral shadow can see a total solar eclipse.

Q: From full moon to third quarter moon takes about a week.

Q: As it orbits the Earth, the Moon appears to move its own diameter (0.5 degrees) eastward every hour against the background stars.

Q: At the equinoxes, the declination of the Sun must be zero degrees.

Q: At the solstices, the Sun's declination will be 23.5 degrees from the equator.

Q: From Earth, the Sun and Moon have about the same angular diameter.

Q: An hour of right ascension corresponds to 60 degrees in the sky.

Q: There are 3,600 arc seconds in a degree.

Q: The vernal equinox marks the beginning of spring in the northern hemisphere.

Q: The sidereal day is determined by the Earth's rotation with respect to the stars.

Q: A tropical year is the same as a sidereal year.

Q: A star with a right ascension of 2.6 hrs will rise 2.6 hours after the vernal equinox.

Q: Over 20,000 stars are visible to the naked eye on the darkest, clearest nights.

Q: The closest terrestrial analog to hours of right ascension is angle of longitude.

Q: Constellations are close clusters of stars, all at about the same distance from the Sun.

Q: In general, the brightest star in a given constellation is designated as alpha.

Q: The south celestial pole is located at a declination of -90 degrees.

Q: In the sky, declination is measured in degrees north or south of the celestial equator.

Q: The celestial sphere is divided into 88 modern constellations.

Q: Latitude and right ascension are coordinate systems used to find objects on the celestial sphere.

Q: Right ascension in the sky is very similar to latitude on the Earth.