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Measurements in Space

Total questions: 50

Worksheet time: 25mins

Name
Class
Date
1.

An astronomical unit is...

a)

The average distance between the Earth and the Sun

b)

The average distance between the Sun and Neptune

c)

The diameter of the sun

d)

The time it takes light to travel across our solar system

2.

The distance that light can travel in a year is called....

a)

A light second

b)

A light minute

c)

A light month

d)

A light year

3.

This geometrically derived unit equals about 3.26 light years

a)

Astronomical Unit

b)

Light year

c)

Parsec

d)

Light second

4.

_____________ would be the best to use to measure the distance between galaxies

a)

Astronomical units

b)

Light seconds

c)

Light years

d)

Parsecs

5.

_______________ would be the best unit to use to measure the distance between the asteroid belt and Pluto

a)

Astronomical units

b)

Light seconds

c)

Light years

d)

Parsecs

6.

_______________ would be the best unit to use to measure the distance between the our sun and Proxima Centauri (our nearest star neighbor).

a)

Astronomical units

b)

Light seconds

c)

Light years

7.

How far away is Earth from the sun in Astronomical Units?

a)

1

b)

150 million

c)

92 million

d)

3

8.

Lightyear is the measurement of...

a)

the speed of light

b)

the amount of time light can travel one parsec

c)

the distance light can travel in one year

d)

the distance light can travel in one second

9.

True or false? Parsecs are used to measure time.

a)

True

b)

False

10.

If a star has a parallax angle of 1 arcseconds, how far away from Earth is it in lightyears?

a)

1

b)

2

c)

.5

d)

3.26

11.

How many Lightyears are in a Parsec?

a)

3.26

b)

1

c)

150 million

d)

30.1

12.
Planets orbit the Sun in a shape called a(n)
a)
circle
b)
ellipse
c)
focus
d)
perihelion
13.
An ellipse is drawn around two points called
a)
aphelion
b)
perihelion
c)
foci
d)
axis
14.
Where is the planet moving faster
a)
Position A to B
b)
Position B to C
c)
Position H to I
d)
Position I to J
15.
What has an eccentricity of zero
a)
a straight line
b)
a large ellipse
c)
a circle
d)
a small ellipse
16.
Kepler's 2nd Law deals with 
a)
the shape of the planets' orbits
b)
the speed/area the planet travels 
c)
the length of time it takes the planet to orbit the sun
17.
A planet moves __________ when it is farthest from the sun.
a)
faster
b)
slower
18.
The farther away a planet is from the sun, the _______ it takes it to orbit the sun once. 
a)
longer
b)
shorter
19.
The path a planet travels around the sun is called its 
a)
orbit
b)
ellipse
c)
barycenter
d)
precession
20.
What does Kepler's 1st Law state? 
a)
all planets move in elliptical shaped orbits around the sun
b)
all ellipses have foci
c)
not all ellipses have the same eccentricity
d)
the sun is located at one of the foci
21.
What does Kepler's 2nd Law state? 
a)
during a planet's orbit, the planet will sweep out equal areas in its orbit in equal amounts of time
b)
all areas are equal in space
c)
triangles have equal areas
d)
no two points in a planet's orbit are equal
22.

Which ellipse has an eccentricity of 0.7.

a)
b)
c)
23.
Which diagram shows a planet with the least eccentric orbit?
a)
1
b)
2
c)
3
d)
4
24.
The place where a planet is closest to the Sun as it orbits the Sun is called the
a)
perihelion
b)
aphelion
25.
The place where a planet is farthest away from the Sun in its orbit around the Sun is called the
a)
aphelion
b)
perihelion
26.
What is true about the area between points A, B and the Sun, and the area between points H, I and the Sun?
a)
The area between A, B and the Sun is the largest.
b)
The area between H, I and the Sun is the largest
c)
Both areas are equal in size
d)
There is not enough information to determine the areas
27.

How does Newton's Law of Universal Gravitation describe the relationship between gravity and mass?

a)

As mass increases, gravitational force increases

b)

As mass increases, gravitational force decreases

c)

As mass increases, gravitational force does not change

28.

According to Newton's 2nd Law of Motion...

a)

An object at rest will stay at rest unless acted on by a force

b)

The more mass an object has, the more force will be required to accelerate it

c)

Every action has an equal and opposite reaction

d)

Gravity accelerates all objects at a constant rate

29.

The force experienced by an object due to gravity is called its...

a)

Mass

b)

Acceleration

c)

Weight

d)

Velocity

30.

Why do objects in Space take curved orbital paths?

a)

Massive objects bend Space and time

b)

The gravity of planets and stars oppose one another

c)

Ellipses are the most efficient orbital shape

d)

Black holes bend Space to form circular orbits

31.

How does orbital velocity scale with distance?

a)

Objects closer to the Sun have greater orbital velocity

b)

Object further from the Sun have less orbital velocity

c)

Orbital velocity does not scale with distance

32.
A rock thrown hard enough sideways will orbit the Earth once every _____
a)
9 minutes
b)
90 minutes
c)
9 hours
d)
90 hours
33.
In order to break free of a planet's gravity, an object must be moving faster than the _____
a)
escape velocity
b)
getaway acceleration
c)
break-away pace
d)
liberation altitude
34.
Two factors effecting the magnitude of the force of gravity between 2 objects are...
a)
mass and distance 
b)
mass and matter
c)
distance and weight 
d)
weight and mass
35.

When will the gravity between two objects be the LEAST?

a)

when the masses of both objects is small and the objects are close together

b)

when the masses of both objects is small and the objects are far apart

c)

when the masses of both objects is large and the objects are close together

d)

when the masses of both objects is large and the objects are far apart

36.
Which model has greater gravitational attraction (if any)
a)
Model A
b)
Model B
c)
Both Model A and Model B (same gravity)
37.

Which is newtons first law states

a)

An object at rest will remain at rest unless a force is applied

b)

An object is moving

c)

An object has stopped

d)

An moving object will keep going when a force is applied to it

38.

Which is newtons 3rd law

a)

for every thing there is reaction

b)

for every reaction there is a unusual action

c)

For every reaction there is an equal and opposite reaction

d)

for every reaction there is an good action

39.

Which is newtons 2nd law

a)

Acceleration is a change in speed

b)

Acceleration is a change in action

c)

Acceleration is a change in name

d)

Acceleration is a change in velocity

40.
You can think of it as "how much stuff makes up an object"
a)
size
b)
brightness
c)
mass
d)
density
41.

A person would weigh more on Jupiter than on the Earth because _?_.

a)

Jupiter has more mass, and therefore more gravity

b)

Jupiter has less mass, and therefore more gravity

c)

Jupiter has more mass, and therefore less gravity

d)

Jupiter has less mass and therefore less gravity

42.
Mercury has ______ gravity than Earth.
a)
less
b)
more
c)
the same
43.

As mass increases, what happens to gravitational force?

a)

increases

b)

decreases

c)

stays the same

44.

Do planets affect the sun? Why?

a)

No. The Sun pulls on the planets and keep them in orbit.

b)

Yes. Sun pulls on planets; planets pull on Sun.

45.

What forces combine to keep Earth in its orbit around the sun and the moon in orbit around Earth.

a)

Mass and Gravity

b)

mass and weight

c)

Mass and Inertia

d)

Gravity and Inertia

46.

With greater distance, the parallax angle

a)

increases

b)

decreases

c)

stays the same

d)

doesn't change

47.

Which of the following stars is closest to us?

a)

Procyon (parallax angle = 0.29")

b)

Ross 780 (parallax angle = 0.21")

c)

Regulus (parallax angle = 0.04")

d)

Sirius (parallax angle = 0.38")

48.

Below are two star photos taken six months apart and laid on top of one another so the background stars (circles) line up. There are two nearby stars also shown. Which of these stars is closer?

a)
b)
49.
What is parallax?
a)
the angle formed by Earth and two celestial bodies located at 90 degrees from Earth
b)
the apparent difference in the position of an object, as we viewed from a different position
c)
the apparent difference in the position of an object, viewed at the same time each year
d)
the average distance between a celestial object and Earth
50.

True or False?

Neglecting air resistance, all objects will free fall at a rate of 9.8 m/s2 on Earth.

a)

True

b)

False