Constellations
Star Names
Scientific Notation
Distance and Angle Units
Parallax
100
A group of stars that form an officially recognized pattern is called a: ______________
Constellation
100
Catalog numbers always have the following format:
Letters followed by numbers.
100
Why do we need scientific notation in Astronomy?
Most numbers in Astronomy have a lot of zeros.
100
Which is bigger: miles or kilometers?
Miles
100
Why is it so difficult to measure distances in Astronomy?
We cannot make direct measurements of distances since we cannot visit other stars.
200
A group of stars that form a pattern that is not officially recognized is called an ______________.
Asterism
200
Bayer Designation names always have the following format:
A greek letter followed by the constellation name.
200
Convert this number into scientific notation: 28,000,000
2.8 x 107
200
How many parsecs in a Megaparsec?
1,000,000
200
What is parallax?
The apparent shift in position of an object against the background.
300
Is the Big Dipper a constellation or asterism?
Asterism
300
A star has the name HR 2862. Is this a proper name, Bayer Designation, or a catalog number?
Catalog Number
300
Convert this number back to standard notation:
1.7 x 105
170,000
300
Sort the distance units from SMALLEST to LARGEST.
km, mi, AU, ly, pc, Mpc
300
What would cause an object to have a large parallax angle?
It has to either be close to us or we have to move along a long baseline distance.
400
Is Orion a constellation or asterism?
Constellation
400
A star is called Alpha Centuari. Is this a proper name, catalog number, or Bayer Designation?
Bayer Designation
400
Convert this number into scientific notation: 0.00055
5.5 x 10-4
400
Which distance measurement would be the most appropriate to measure the distance from our Sun to the nearest star, Proxima Centauri?
Light Years
400
What is the formula for finding the distance to a nearby object?
D = ("Half Baseline") / (Tan ("half angular distance")
500
Why don't we see the same constellations in the sky all year long?
Earth’s orbit causes different constellations to appear since the night side of Earth faces a different part of the sky.
500
Which greek letter indicates that a star is the brightest in its constellation?
Alpha
500
Convert this number back to standard notation:
2.3 x 10-6
0.000 0023
500
How many arcminutes fit into 1˚?
60
500
What is the formula for finding the distance to an object in space?
D = 3.26/theta
600
Is emitting light a characteristic of a star, a planet, or both?
A star
600
What does the gamma symbol mean on the rightmost star in the constellation Aries?
It means that star is the third brightest star in the constellation.
600
Which of the following places these three numbers in the correct order from SMALLEST to LARGEST?
4.6 x 103 5.7 x 10-4 1.2 x 102
5.7 x 10-4 1.2 x 102 4.6 x 103
600
Which angle measurement is larger: 2” or 2’?
2'
600
As you walk 60 feet along a sidewalk you notice that a tree in the distance appears to move through an angular distance of 40˚ against the background. Calculate how far away the tree is.
82.4 feet away
700
Does the following describe a planet or a star?
It orbits a star, it is made of hydrogen gas, helium gas, and liquid methane, it reflects starlight, and there is no nuclear fusion in the core.
Planet
700
Would Epsilon Orionis be brighter or dimmer than Delta Orionis?
Dimmer because Epsilon comes after Delta in the greek alphabet.
700
Use a calculator to complete the calculation shown below:
4.3 x 1036
700
Convert the angle 15’ into degrees.
0.25˚
700
Over the course of 6 months we observe that the red giant star Aldebaran moves through an angular distance of 0.0980”. How far away is Aldebaran from us?
66.5 light years away