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Astronomy Unit Test

Total questions: 56

Worksheet time: 55mins

Name
Class
Date
1.
The Earth's tilt is _?_degrees.
a)
0
b)
90
c)
23.5
d)
41
2.
The Earth's _?_ is an imaginary line that goes from the North Pole to the South Pole.
a)
equator
b)
axis
c)
prime meridian
d)
equinox
3.
The spinning of an object on its axis is called _?_.
a)
orbit
b)
rotation
c)
revolution
d)
tide
4.

If the Earth rotated slower, how would that affect the length of the day?

a)

longer day

b)

shorter day

c)

same time, 24 hours

d)

longer year

5.
What are the reasons for the seasons?
a)
Earth's tilt and rotation.
b)
Earth's rotation and revolution.
c)
Earth's tilt and revolution.
d)
Earth's tilt and resolution
6.
What would happen if the Earth's axis was tilted at a greater angle than it is now? 
a)
Days would be more than 24 hours.
b)
Days would be less than 24 hours.
c)
Hotter summers, colder winters
d)
More tilt would not make a difference.
7.
When the Northern Hemisphere of Earth is leaning away from the Sun, What season is the Southern Hemisphere experiencing?
a)
Summer
b)
Winter
c)
Spring
d)
Fall
8.
When the Northern Hemisphere is pointing towards the sun, what season is the Southern Hemisphere?
a)
Winter
b)
Spring
c)
Fall
d)
Summer
9.
Which diagram(s) BEST represent(s) the position of the Moon during a New moon?
a)
A
b)
B
c)
C
d)
A and C
10.
What causes the phases of the Moon to change over the course of a month?
a)
The moon's orbit (revolution)
b)
The moon's spin (rotation)
c)
The earth's orbit (revolution)
d)
The earth's spin (rotation)
11.
Name this phase of the moon.
a)
waning crescent
b)
waxing crescent
c)
waning gibbous
d)
waxing gibbous
12.

If Earth revolved (revolution) more slowly, what would happen?

a)

Years would be longer.

b)

Years would be shorter.

c)

Summer would be longer.

d)

Winter would be shorter.

13.

How many days are in a moon's cycle?

a)

24

b)

29 1/2

c)

365

d)

365 1/2

14.
What phase of the moon is pictured here?
a)
Full moon
b)
New moon
c)
Waxing gibbous
d)
Waxing crescent
15.

What does waxing mean when describing our moon?

a)

Getting larger

b)

Getting smaller

16.

What does waning mean when describing our moon?

a)

Getting larger

b)

Getting smaller

17.

What affects the strength of gravity

a)

Weight and Mass

b)

Mass and Distance

c)

Distance and Weight

d)

Mass and Force

18.

What is the Big Bang Theory?

a)

Two giant stars hit each other and exploded.

b)

The universe started as a hot, dense point in space that is rapidly expanding.

c)

The universe got too big, exploded, and started over.

d)

None of the above

19.

What are Galaxies made of?

a)

Stars, gases, and space dust

b)

Suns and planets

c)

Dust and gases

d)

Gravity

20.

What type of galaxy is this?

a)

Elliptical

b)

Spiral

c)

Irregular

d)

Conical

21.

What type of galaxy is this?

a)

Elliptical

b)

Spiral

c)

Irregular

d)

Conical

22.

What galaxy do we live in?

a)

Andromeda

b)

Milky Way

c)

Tuffle

d)

Ceres

23.

Most scientists believe the Big Bang Theory explains which of the following questions?

a)

How our planets and moons formed

b)

How our universe began

c)

How the sun turns hydrogen into helium

d)

How fast light travels through space

24.

Gravity is responsible for which of the following characteristics of a galaxy?

a)

The motion of the objects within it

b)

The size of its largest stars

c)

Its location within the universe

d)

The color of light it emits

25.

A system of millions or billions of stars, together with gas and dust, held together by gravitational attraction

a)

meteor

b)

galaxy

c)

constellation

d)

solar system

26.

All existing matter and space considered as a whole is called what?

a)

Galaxy

b)

Planet

c)

Universe

d)

Milky Way

27.

consists of the sun and all the objects that revolve around it

a)

solar system

b)

universe

c)

planet

d)

moon

28.

What were the main components involved in the formation of the solar system?

a)

Dust only

b)

Gas only

c)

Dust and gas on their own

d)

Gravity only

e)

Dust and gas pulled together by gravity

29.

Earth and its solar system are a part of which of the following galaxies?

a)

NG-137

b)

Messier 63

c)

Andromeda

d)

Milky Way

30.

About how long ago was the universe formed?

a)

About 13.7 billion years ago

b)

About 17.3 billion years ago

c)

About 4.6 billion years ago

d)

About 6.4 billion years ago

31.

What is the correct order for the formation of our solar system?

a)

1,2,3,4

b)

2,3,4,1

c)

2,4,3,1

d)

1,3,4,2

32.

As the distance between two objects

increases, the gravity between them

a)

increases

b)

decreases

c)

stays the same

d)

is zero

33.

What force played a major role in the formation of the solar system?

a)

Magnetism

b)

Push

c)

Pull

d)

Gravity

34.
Place these objects in order from smallest to largest.
a)
Planets, solar system, universe, galaxy
b)
Solar system, planets, galaxy, universe
c)
Planets, solar system, galaxy, universe
d)
Galaxy, solar system, planets, universe
35.

Which of the following best describes the formation of the solar system?

a)

The sun ejected rocky material which later went on to form the planets.

b)

A rotating disk of gas and dust was drawn together by the force of gravity.

c)

One very large planetary body broke apart into several smaller planets.

d)

Several stars of different masses cooled and formed the planets and the sun.

36.

Students are making a model of planetary motion. The students tie a tennis ball to a string. The string passes through a spool and is attached to a 1 kilogram mass.


The mass pulls down on the string as the students spin the tennis ball around the spool. If the students wish to change the model to show what would happen if the sun had a greater gravitational pull, what change should they make?

a)

Spin the tennis ball at an increased speed

b)

Replace the 1 kg mass with a 2 kg mass

c)

Tie the tennis ball with a longer string

d)

Change the spool to a longer one

37.

Which of the following is a complete list of the inner planets?

a)

Venus, Earth, Mars, Jupiter

b)

Mercury, Venus, Earth, Mars

c)

Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, Neptune

d)

Mercury, Venus, Earth, Jupiter

38.

Which of the following is a complete list of the gas giant planets?

a)

Venus, Earth, Mars, Jupiter

b)

Mercury, Venus, Earth, Mars

c)

Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, Neptune

d)

Mercury, Venus, Earth, Jupiter

39.

The orbits of the objects in the solar system are the direct result of which of the following feature of the Sun?

a)

Its magnetic field

b)

Its brightness

c)

Its gravitational pull

d)

Its chemical composition

40.

If someone is building a scale model of our solar system which characteristic would be the most difficult to build into the model?

a)

The relative sizes of the objects

b)

The colors of the objects

c)

The distances between objects

d)

The composition of the objects

41.

The force of gravitational attraction between the Sun and Venus could be increased by reducing which of the following?

a)

The period of rotation of the Sun

b)

The distance between the Sun and Venus

c)

The speed of the orbit of Venus

d)

The colors of the Sun and Venus

42.

A large object orbiting a star

a)

Planet

b)

Moon

c)

Asteroids

d)

Sun

e)

Comet

43.

A star that is dense and made up of hot gases

a)

Planet

b)

Moon

c)

Asteroids

d)

Sun

e)

Comet

44.

What holds celestial objects in orbit?

a)

Centripetal Force

b)

Gravity

c)

Mass

d)

Luck

45.

How can you tell the difference between moons and planets?

a)

moons are smaller than planets

b)

planets have life, moons do not

c)

planets orbit around stars, moons orbit around planets

d)

planets have rings

46.

Order from smallest to largest:

a)

planet, solar system, galaxy, universe

b)

universe, galaxy, solar system, planet

c)

planet, galaxy, solar system, universe

d)

planet, solar system, galaxy, universe

47.

What is the area in the outer edge of our solar system beyond Neptune called? Dwarf planets such as Pluto orbit in this area of our solar system.

a)

Ganymede

b)

Asteroid Belt

c)

Astronomical Zone

d)

Kuiper Belt

48.

For many centuries, most people believed all celestial objects such as stars and the sun revolved around Earth. But we NOW know this is wrong, NOT TRUE. The theory that is TRUE today is called what?

a)

Geocentric Theory

b)

Heliocentric Theory

c)

Center Theory

d)

Celestial Theory

49.

Why is Pluto not a planet?

a)

It is not in orbit around the sun and acts more like a comet than a planet.

b)

It doesn't have a nearly-spherical shape.

c)

It has not cleared the neighborhood around its orbit of smaller objects. Gravity not strong enough to accomplish this task.

d)

It doesn't have any moons which is needed to be considered a planet.

50.

What word is used to describe the time it takes an object to orbit around the Sun?

a)

Revolution

b)

Rotation

c)

Spin

d)

Turn

51.
What six things make up our Solar System?
a)
Sun, Planets, Moons, Asteroids, Comets, Meteors
b)
Galaxies, Planets, Stars, Asteroids, Planets, Moons
c)
Sun, Planets, Moons, Stars, Asteroids, Comets
d)
Planets, Stars, Galaxies, Comets, Meteors, Sun
52.

______ contains 99.8% of the mass in our solar system.

a)

Jupiter and Saturn

b)

The Sun

c)

All the planets combined

d)

All the planets, asteroids and comets combined

53.

How many stars are in our solar system?

a)

1

b)

1,000

c)

1 million

d)

Over 1 billion

54.

How many stars are estimated to be in the Milky Way galaxy?

a)

1

b)

1,000

c)

1 million

d)

Over 2 billion

55.
When the solar system was young, new materials were added to the planets by...
a)
nuclear fusion.
b)
primitive life-forms.
c)
impacts of smaller objects.
d)
convection of planet layers.
56.

Why is making a model of the solar system difficult?

a)

Don't have the right materials

b)

The solar system is so big and the objects in it are so small in comparison

c)

There are too many parts in a model

d)

Because the science concepts are too difficult