Twenty Questions Subject: Astronomy

Twenty Questions

1. What instrument made possible the discovery of additional planets?

Telescope Question #1 - Answer

2. What is the next planet outward from the sun after Saturn?

Question #2 - Answer Uranus

3. How can you tell Pluto is not one of the gas giants?

Question #3 - Answer It’s dense and rocky

4. What color are the hottest stars? The coolest stars?

Question #4 - Answer Hottest – Blue and White Coldest - Red

5. All of the following are major types of galaxies except which one – spiral, irregular, elliptical, or triangular?

Question #5 - Answer Triangular

6. What vocabulary word refers to a large cloud of gas and dust?

Question #6 - Answer Nebula

7. What is a supernova? What can be created because of it?

Question #7 - Answer A supernova is the explosion of a massive star at the end of its life. It can either turn into a black hole, new star (nebula), neutron star, or pulsar depending on its size.

8. Describe the role of hydrogen gas in a main-sequence star (protostar)?

Question #8 - Answer A main-sequence star generates energy (heat and light) in its core as hydrogen changes into helium.

9. What occurs when the Earth’s shadow falls on the moon?

Question #9 - Answer Lunar Eclipse

10. Which of the following is the largest – galaxy, constellation, universe, star?

Question #10 - Answer Universe

11. Which phase of the moon occurs when it is less than ¼ visible and getting smaller?

Question #11 - Answer Waning Crescent

12. What is the difference between a meteor, meteorite, and meteoroid?

Question 12 - Answer Meteor – a chunk of rock from outer space that enters the Earth’s atmosphere and burns up (also called a shooting star) Meteoroid – A chunk of rock, smaller than an asteroid that orbits in space. Meteorite – A chunk of rock that impacts the surface, creating a crater.

13. What is the cause of tides?

Question #13 - Answer The gravitational force of the moon and a little from the sun pulling on the water’s of the Earth.

14. An object that travels in an orbit around the Earth is called a what?

Question #14 - Answer Satellite

15. The reason for ____ in the southern hemisphere is because the South Pole is tilted directly toward the sun on about December 21 st.

Question #15 - Answer Summer Solstice

16. Why do various planets have seasons?

Question #16 - Answer Because the tilt of the planets axis. This causes certain areas of the planet to receive direct sunlight (warm) and other areas to receive sunlight more at an angle (cold)

17. What term refers to the amount of time it takes for an object to orbit around another body in space once?

Question #17 - Answer Period of Revolution

18. What are comets? How do they form their tail? Where do they come from?

Question #18 - Answer Comets, also referred to as “dirty snowballs.” They are made up of ice, rock, and dust. Tails are formed when a comet passes close enough to the sun. Solar radiation heats the ice so that the comet gives off gas and dust. The tail than always points away from the sun because of the solar winds released. Oort Cloud (Surrounds outer solar system) and the Kuiper Belt (Outside Neptune)

19. Describe why we see several impact craters on the moon but few on Earth.

Question #19 - Answer Most objects burn up in Earth’s atmosphere before striking the surface. The moon does not have an atmosphere to slow objects down. In addition, erosion and the movement of plates under the surface cause the surface features of Earth to change.

20. If scientists could somehow bring Europa as close to the sun as the Earth is, 1 AU, how do you think Europa would be affected?

Question #20 - Answer If Europa were closer to the sun, it would heat up considerably. Europa is made mostly of ice, so much of its surface might melt to form oceans and an atmosphere.