Intro to Astronomy - Earth Space II - Unit 11

astronomy

the study of the stars, planets, and other heavenly bodies

-Astrology -Zodiac

What did many ancient civilizations tie the science of astronomy with?

True

True or false? Astronomy is the oldest, most exciting, and most unpredictable of all sciences

amateurs

Many new discoveries in astronomy are made every day by astronomers and ___________

cosmology

study of the universe (origin and structure)

universe

largest in astronomy

local group

cluster of galaxies

galaxy

group of stars which revolve around central point

star

hot, bright sphere of gas

Universe -> Local group -> Galaxy -> Star -> Planet -> Moon -> Asteroid Belt -> Meteroid, Comet

What is the breakdown of the universe?

quasars

very distant, intense radio sources that are like stars, but larger, brighter, and are massive

pulsar

distant objects that send out rapid bursts of energy (light and radio waves); blink on and off

Neutron stars

What is another word for a pulsar?

Black holes

where a star has died, collapsed, and the gravity is so strong that no light can escape. Very dense

big bang theory

all of the energy and matter of the universe originally existed in an incomprehensibly hot and dense state. Huge cosmic explosion and the pieces slowly formed galaxies, which then formed stars and solar systems.

Big Bang theory

What occurred about 13-15 billion years ago?

true

True or false? The universe is still expanding with more space between the galaxies

edge

The Big Bang theory states there is a beginning and an ______ to our Universe

red

Most galaxies exhibit a ___ spectral shift to the Milky Way

greatest

Far galaxies have _______________ shift

"Big Chill"

stars will burn out, and galaxies will become more widely separated in an endless cold, dark universe

"Big Crunch"

outward expansion will stop and gravitational contraction will follow

1. How and when was the Universe created?

2. Will the universe ever end?

3. How was our Solar System created?

4. Does life exist elsewhere in the Universe?

What are the important questions that remain?

Astronomy began with farmers observing the heavens to plant crops

What happened in astronomy in 8,000 B.C.E.?

Babylonians founded astrology and made a lunar calendar

What happened in astronomy in 3,000 B.C.E.?

Egyptians made solar calendar and sun dials, Chinese recorded comets and eclipses, and Arabians kept star charts and named many stars

What happened in astronomy in 2,500 B.C.E.?

Aldebaran and Betelgeuse

What are examples of an Arabic civilization that kept star charts and named many stars?

600 B.C.E-150 C.E.

What is the time period of the Ancient Greeks?

Aristotle

________________ said that the Earth was spherical due to the curved shadow casted when it eclipses the Moon

Hipparchus

_____________ developed a star catalog, plotted the location of 850 stars, and categorized them into six groups based on brightness. System still used today

Eratosthenes

___________ used observations, geometry, and trigonometry to determine the circumference of the Earth

Ptolemy

__________ recorded all astronomical knowledge up to that time in his book called the Almagest. Developed the geocentric unisverse based on Aristotle's teachings.

Ptolemy

Who had the dominant view of Earth for 2,000 years?

Retrograde motion

the apparent backwards motion of five visible planets against the background of stars

Ptolemy

Who discovered retrograde motion?

Baghdad

Who became the center of astronomy during the Dark Ages?

Because of the Renaissance

In the 1400's, why was astronomy reborn?

Nicholaus Copernicus

___________ proposed the Heliocentric Universe. Planets revolved around the Sun in pathways. Concluded Earth was a planet.

Nicholaus Copernicus

Who went against the Church's views, but did not suffer since his works were published on his deathbed in 1543?

Tycho Brahe

_________ disagreed with Copernicus and believed in the geocentric universe even though his observations of the planets show that Copernicus was right

stellar parallax

the apparent shift in a star's position due to the revolution of Earth

Tycho Brahe

Who set up the first modern observatory?

tycho brahe

Who discovered comets and novae are not in our universe?

Denmark

Where was Brahe unpopular at?

Johannes Kepler

Who was Tycho Brahe's assistant?

True

True or false? Kepler believed in the Copernican view (heliocentric)

1. The planets move around the Sun in ellipses

2. When a planet is close to the Sun, it moves faster in its orbit than when it is farther away.

3. A planet's period (how long it takes to go around the Sun once) can be used to figure out its average distance from the Sun. p2=a3

What are Kelper's laws of planetary motion?

Being in Poland

How did Kepler avoid the wrath of the church?

Gallileo Galilei

Who did a lot of work in physics and invented the early telescope?

1. Observed Jupiter's four largest moons

2. Planets are disks rather than just points of light

3. Venus exhibits phases like the Moon

4. Features of the moon

5. Discovered sunspots

What are the important discoveres of Galileo?

Isaac Newton

__________ studied math and science, came up with the idea of gravity

gravity

an invisible force which holds the solar system together

Law of Universal Gravity

What explains why the planets remain in orbit around the Sun?

action-reaction laws

Newton made many scientific discoveries, like inertia, force, and _______________

Isaac Newton

Because of ______________, church began slowly changing views on astronomy

miles, kilometers

We use _______ and ______ to measure distances on Earth and within the solar system

238,000

From Earth to Moon is _________ miles

25 million

From Earth to Venus is _________________ miles

Astronomical Unit (AU)

93 million miles

Astronomical units

What is used to determine very long distances in solar system

The distance light travels in 1 year

What is 1 light year?

1 light year

What is 6 trillion miles?

parsec

space measurement that equals 3.26 light years

parsecs

What is used for interstellar and intergalatic distances?

1. refractors

2. reflectors

What are the two types of optical telescopes?

refractors

uses lenses to gather and focus starlight to a point (invented by Galileo)

refractors

What telescope produces an upside down image?

Yerkes Observatory

The largest refractor telescope is near Chicago and has a 40" lens in diameter, what is it?

1. fuzzy distorted images from light rays bent through large lens

2. different colors were produced from the light

3. hard to grind large lens accurately

What are the problems with large refractors?

reflectors

uses a curved mirror to gather and focus starlight (invented by Newton)

reflectors

what are the largest telescopes in the world?

Hale Telescope

What is the largest reflector in California and has a 200' mirror in diameter?

1. Not as many lens to distort images

2. Mirror supported from back, whereas lens only supported on its edges

3. Shorter tube for scope

What are advantages of reflectors over refractors?

1. Photographic film and CCDS

2. Active optics

3. Interferometer

4. Adaptive optics

What are advances in light collection?

CCD chips

What can be designed to detect IR and UV light?

Charge-coupled devices

What does CCD stand for?

Active optics

Uses motors to drive numerous precisely controlled supports that push or pull on the mirror to compensate for the distortions produced by gravity, wind, and other forces

Interferometer

Using connecting telescopes together to function as one larger telescope

Adaptive optics

Uses computer controlled deformable mirrors to cancel out real time effects of atmospheric turbulence

1. Away from city lights and pollution

2. Air is thinner at higher altitudes so telescope image is less distorted

3. Weather conditions are more ideal (less chance of rain/clouds)

Why are telescopes and observatories located on mountains in dry areas?

Radio astronomy

The study of radio waves in outer space

Radio telescope

Parabolic dish that collects and focuses radio waves using an antenna into special receivers to record direction, strength, and wavelength of signals

100 meter Steerable Robert C? Byrd Radio Telescope, West Virgina

What is an example of a radio telescope?

1. Non-steerable

2. Steerable

What are the two types of radio telescopes?

Non-steerable

Placed in the ground

Steerable

Able to move

1. Radio waves can pass right through clouds of dust in space, where light rays are blocked out.

2. Radio telescopes can be used day or night on Earth

What are the advantages of radio telescopes over light telescopes?

Space telescopes

____________ avoid pollution, city lights, and the Earth's atmosphere, and can detect optical light and other ranges on the electromagnetic spectrum

Hubble Space Telescope

has an enormous range of discoveries such as evidence to support the nebular hypothesis, black holes in the centers of large galaxies, and has been able for us to produce the Ultra-Deep Field

Hubble Space Telescope

What was launched April 24, 1990 and will last until 2030-2040?

James Webb Space Telescope

What is the successor of the Hubble, launched December 25,2021. An infrared telescope with a primary mirror of 6.5 meters in diameter, it will provide more than six times the light gathering area of the Hubble

nebular theory

The James Webb Space Telescope has sensitive instruments that will be used to measure the chemical and physical properties of other solar systems, observes the first stars and galaxies formed after the Big Bang, and test ______________ of our solar system's formation