Question 1

What were the three discoveries Galileo made with his telescope observations and quickly published into Sidereus Nuncius ?

Accepted Answer

First, the moon was not perfect. It had

Question 2

Kepler discovered that planets do not move at uniform speeds along their elliptical orbits.

Accepted Answer

A) True 
 B)False

Question 3

Ancient astronomers often had difficulty explaining _____, the occasional westward motion of the planets.

Accepted Answer

A)  parallax 
B)  eccentrics 
C)  retrograde motion 
D)  deferents 
E)  epicycles 
A)  parallax 
B)  eccentrics 
C)  retrograde motion 
D)  deferents 
E)  epicycles

Question 4

Most Greek philosophers believed in a geocentric Universe.

Accepted Answer

A) True 
 B)False

Question 5

Explain why it is a common misconception that Galileo faced the Inquisition for his belief in a heliocentric Universe.

Accepted Answer

It is assumed that Galileo faced the Inq

Question 6

Though their contributions to astronomy were different, Galileo and Copernicus were astronomers during the same time period.

Accepted Answer

A) True 
 B)False

Question 7

Pythagoras proposed that all nature was underlain by musical principles, by which he meant _______________.

Accepted Answer

The answer of Pythagoras proposed that all nature was underlain...

Question 8

Kepler's third law of planetary motion states, "A planet's _____ squared is proportional to its average distance from the Sun cubed."

Accepted Answer

A)  radius 
B)  diameter 
C)  rotational speed 
D)  orbital period 
E)  rotational period 
A)  radius 
B)  diameter 
C)  rotational speed 
D)  orbital period 
E)  rotational period

Question 9

Early astronomers believed that Earth did not move because they saw no ____, the apparent motion of an object because of the motion of the observer.

Accepted Answer

A)  uniform circular motion 
B)  archeoastronomy 
C)  heliocentrism 
D)  eccentricity 
E)  parallax 
A)  uniform circular motion 
B)  archeoastronomy 
C)  heliocentrism 
D)  eccentricity 
E)  parallax

Question 10

What was the evidence that ancient astronomers used to conclude that Earth did not move?

Accepted Answer

Ancient astronomers

Question 11

_______________'s laws have been used for almost four centuries as a true description of orbital motion.

Accepted Answer

The answer of _______________'s laws have been used for almost...

Question 12

Whose geocentric model of the Universe dominated astronomy for 2,000 years?

Accepted Answer

A)  Kepler 
B)  Copernicus 
C)  Aristotle 
D)  Galileo 
E)  Ptolemy 
A)  Kepler 
B)  Copernicus 
C)  Aristotle 
D)  Galileo 
E)  Ptolemy

Question 13

What was Eratosthenes's mathematical contribution to the history of astronomy, even though it was incorrect?

Accepted Answer

A)  He calculated the diameter of Earth by what he learned from travelers' itineraries. 
B)  He estimated Earth's revolution rate by measuring the length of shadows casted on the surface. 
C)  He determined that all the planets orbited Earth every 24 hrs. 
D)  He attempted to calculate Earth's radius by utilizing the position of sunlight. 
E)  He believed all of nature was underlain by musical principles. 
A)  He calculated the diameter of Earth by what he learned from travelers' itineraries. 
B)  He estimated Earth's revolution rate by measuring the length of shadows casted on the surface. 
C)  He determined that all the planets orbited Earth every 24 hrs. 
D)  He attempted to calculate Earth's radius by utilizing the position of sunlight. 
E)  He believed all of nature was underlain by musical principles.

Question 14

What principle was Copernicus unable to provide evidence against?

Accepted Answer

A)  uniform circular motion 
B)  heliocentric universe 
C)  geocentric universe 
D)  retrograde motion 
E)  Ptolemy's epicycles 
A)  uniform circular motion 
B)  heliocentric universe 
C)  geocentric universe 
D)  retrograde motion 
E)  Ptolemy's epicycles

Question 15

Which planet did Galileo observe go through a complete set of phases, thus proving the Ptolemaic model wrong?

Accepted Answer

A)  Saturn 
B)  Jupiter 
C)  Mars 
D)  Venus 
E)  Mercury 
A)  Saturn 
B)  Jupiter 
C)  Mars 
D)  Venus 
E)  Mercury

Question 16

Galileo's book Dialogo strongly defended the work of which astronomer?

Accepted Answer

A)  Ptolemy 
B)  Tycho 
C)  Copernicus 
D)  Kepler 
E)  Aristotle 
A)  Ptolemy 
B)  Tycho 
C)  Copernicus 
D)  Kepler 
E)  Aristotle

Question 17

In the Copernican system, Earth moves slower along its orbit than the planets that lie farther from the Sun.

Accepted Answer

A) True 
 B)False

Question 18

Match between columns
                        Premises: Discovered four moons circling Jupiter
Believed the sizes of the celestial spheres carrying the outer three planets are determined by spacers consisting of two of the five regular solids
Developed a heliocentric Universe model with retrograde planetary motion
Determined that the orbits of the planets around the sun are ellipses with the sun at one focus
Reported that the Milky Way was made up of many stars too faint to see with the naked eye.
Calculated Earth's radius by utilizing the position of the sun in Alexandria and Syrene and the distance between the two cities
Proved Ptolemaic theory was invalid because he found no parallax with the discovery of a new star
Believed Earth moved around a central fire
Developed an astronomical model that contained 55 spheres turning at different rates and at different angles to carry the seven known planets across the sky
Believed that the Universe was divided into two parts: Earth, imperfect and changeable; and the heavens, perfect and unchanging, a geocentric model used for over 2000 years
Explained planetary motion by describing epicycles, deferents and equants
Believed that the heavens are perfect and must be made up of perfect spheres rotating at constant rates and carrying objects in a circle

Accepted Answer

The Answer of Eratosthenes and Philolaus and Plato and Galileo is...

Question 19

Which model did Galileo disprove by discovering the transit of Venus?

Accepted Answer

A)  Ptolemaic 
B)  Copernican 
C)  Aristotelian 
D)  Plutonic 
E)  Kepler 
A)  Ptolemaic 
B)  Copernican 
C)  Aristotelian 
D)  Plutonic 
E)  Kepler

Question 20

In 1632, which book did the Inquisition order sales to be stopped?

Accepted Answer

A)  De Revolutionibus 
B)  Stederreus Nunctus 
C)  Dialogo 
D)  De Stella Nova 
E)  Astronomia Nova 
A)  De Revolutionibus 
B)  Stederreus Nunctus 
C)  Dialogo 
D)  De Stella Nova 
E)  Astronomia Nova

Exam 4: Origins of Modern Astronomy

What were the three discoveries Galileo made with his telescope observations and quickly published into Sidereus Nuncius ?

Kepler discovered that planets do not move at uniform speeds along their elliptical orbits.

Ancient astronomers often had difficulty explaining _____, the occasional westward motion of the planets.

Most Greek philosophers believed in a geocentric Universe.

Explain why it is a common misconception that Galileo faced the Inquisition for his belief in a heliocentric Universe.

Though their contributions to astronomy were different, Galileo and Copernicus were astronomers during the same time period.

Pythagoras proposed that all nature was underlain by musical principles, by which he meant _______________.

Kepler's third law of planetary motion states, "A planet's _____ squared is proportional to its average distance from the Sun cubed."

Early astronomers believed that Earth did not move because they saw no ____, the apparent motion of an object because of the motion of the observer.

What was the evidence that ancient astronomers used to conclude that Earth did not move?

_______________'s laws have been used for almost four centuries as a true description of orbital motion.

Whose geocentric model of the Universe dominated astronomy for 2,000 years?

What was Eratosthenes's mathematical contribution to the history of astronomy, even though it was incorrect?

What principle was Copernicus unable to provide evidence against?

Which planet did Galileo observe go through a complete set of phases, thus proving the Ptolemaic model wrong?

Galileo's book Dialogo strongly defended the work of which astronomer?

In the Copernican system, Earth moves slower along its orbit than the planets that lie farther from the Sun.

Which model did Galileo disprove by discovering the transit of Venus?

In 1632, which book did the Inquisition order sales to be stopped?

Here and Now

A Users Guide to the Sky

Moon Phases and Eclipses

Gravity

Light and Telescopes

Atoms and Spectra

The Sun

The Family of Stars

The Interstellar Medium

Formation and Structure of Stars

Stellar Evolution

Deaths of Stars

Neutron Stars and Black Holes

The Milky Way Galaxy

Galaxies

Supermassive Black Holes and Active Galaxies

Modern Cosmology

Origin of the Solar System and Extrasolar Planets

Earth the Active Planet

The Moon and Mercury

Venus and Mars

Jupiter and Saturn

Uranus Neptune Pluto and the Kuiper Belt

Meteorites Asteroids and Comets

Astrobiology

Filters