Exam 2: Gravitation and the Waltz of the Planets

If a tenth planet (tentatively predicted to exist on the basis of perturbations in the orbits of Uranus and Neptune)were to be discovered with a sidereal period of 125 years,what would be the radius of its orbit (assumed to be circular)?

What is the difference between the synodic and sidereal periods of a planet?

The action and reaction forces referred to in Newton's third law of motion:

The ancient Greek thinker whose model of the universe came to dominate the medieval world was:

Which of the following statements CORRECTLY describes why Copernicus decided that the orbits of Mercury and Venus are smaller than the orbit of Earth?

According to Newton's first law:

What is the distance between Earth and the nearest star?

In the simplified version of Kepler's third law,P² = a³,the units of the orbital period P and the semimajor axis of the ellipse a must be,respectively:

If a supernova was first seen in the year of Christ's birth (the Star of Bethlehem?)and its distance from Earth was 3 kpc,approximately when did the supernova actually explode?

After a thousand years,Ptolemy's system of planetary motion gave readings that were less accurate than the readings it gave when it was first devised.One main reason for this was that:

Ptolemy's nationality was:

Viewed from Earth,the LARGEST angular diameter of Venus occurs when it is at which phase?

If an object has an orbit around the Sun that has an eccentricity of 0.8,then the orbit is:

A major contribution of Johannes Kepler to the development of modern astronomy was:

The International Space Station is in orbit around Earth.If an astronaut aboard the station releases an object in mid-air,it will:

The old story about the person who sneezed so hard that he fell off his barstool is an exaggerated illustration of which physical law?

The planets that were known before the telescope was invented are:

Not counting Earth,the number of planets known to the ancients was:

In the geocentric model of the solar system developed by Ptolemy,the planets move:

A diver weighing 138 pounds has just dived up and out from the high board and is doing a back flip before starting to descend toward the water.How much force does the diver exert on Earth while doing the back flip?