Ancient Civilizations
Which ancient civilization established a 365-day solar calendar based on the rising of Sirius to regulate agriculture and religious festivals?
Who were the Egyptians?
Which Greek astronomer formalized the geocentric model using epicycles to account for irregular planetary motion?
Who is Ptolemy?
Who formulated the three laws of planetary motion, demonstrating that orbits are elliptical rather than circular?
Who is Kepler?
The constellation Ursa Major is better known by this nickname, often used for navigation in the northern hemisphere.
What is the Big Dipper?
Which ancient Greek astronomer first proposed a heliocentric system, centuries before Copernicus revived the idea?
Who is Aristarchus of Samos?
The Mayan observatory El Caracol was specifically aligned to track the movements of which planet that controlled their warfare and ritual timing?
What is Venus?
Which astronomer reintroduced the heliocentric model and correctly explained retrograde motion as a result of Earth overtaking outer planets?
Who is Copernicus?
Who provided telescopic evidence of moons orbiting Jupiter and phases of Venus, undermining geocentrism?
Who is Galileo?
The pyramids of Egypt were aligned with this constellation’s belt to symbolize the god Osiris and reinforce pharaohs’ divine connection.
What is Orion?
At Chaco Canyon, Native Americans built the Sun Dagger, which marked solstices by casting sunlight on carvings. What does this reveal about their culture?
That they carefully tracked the Sun’s yearly path for ceremonial and agricultural purposes.
The prehistoric monument in England whose stones align with the Sun’s position during solstices functioned as a seasonal calendar. Name this structure.
What is Stonehenge?
Define retrograde motion in astronomical terms.
What is the apparent backward motion of planets against the background of stars due to relative planetary orbits?
Around 240 BCE, who calculated Earth’s circumference using the angles of shadows in two cities at the same time of day?
Who is Eratosthenes?
Which invention allowed Galileo to identify craters on the Moon, sunspots, and the phases of Venus?
What is the telescope?
Maria Mitchell, one of the first prominent female astronomers in the U.S., gained recognition after discovering what celestial object in 1847?
What is a comet?
The Great Pyramid of Giza demonstrates advanced astronomical alignment by pointing directly toward which star, the North Star of 2500 BCE?
What is Thuban?
Tycho Brahe is best remembered for producing what type of contribution that became essential to Kepler’s later work?
What are highly precise, pre-telescopic measurements of planetary positions?
Which astronomer classified galaxies and demonstrated that the universe is expanding?
Who is Edwin Hubble?
Prior to the telescope, sailors used this ancient instrument to measure the altitude of celestial objects above the horizon.
What is the astrolabe (or later, sextant)?
In the early 1900s, which scientist redefined gravity as the warping of space-time, predicting effects like gravitational lensing?
Who is Albert Einstein?
Polynesian navigators crossed vast distances of the Pacific without instruments. What specific system of memorized celestial rising and setting points did they use?
What are star paths/constellation alignments?
Which scientist unified Kepler’s mathematical laws of planetary motion with Galileo’s observational evidence, forming the basis of modern mechanics and gravitation?
Who is Isaac Newton?
Which astronomer discovered the period-luminosity relationship of Cepheid variable stars, providing a method for measuring intergalactic distances?
Who is Henrietta Leavitt?
Which northern constellation forms a distinctive “W” shape and was used as a backup navigation guide opposite Ursa Major?
What is Cassiopeia?
Arrange these three astronomers in chronological order to illustrate the paradigm shift from geocentrism to modern astronomy: Copernicus, Ptolemy, Kepler.
Ptolemy → Copernicus → Kepler