Q&A Hero

Q: Astronauts deployed a solar wind measuring experiment on the Moon because A) the lunar surface is protected by an atmosphere. B) there is no electromagnetic energy arriving there. C) the solar wind does not reach the Earth's surface. D) no one else had attempted the experiment before and they wanted to be the first.

Q: Which of the following have been correlated with sunspot cycles? A) abnormally wet years B) droughts C) both abnormally wet years and droughts D) neither abnormally wet years nor droughts

Q: Which of the following is not a consequence of the solar wind? A) auroras B) disruption of radio communications C) overloads of electrical systems D) creation of Earth's magnetosphere

Q: The auroras in the upper atmosphere are caused by A) visible light interaction with the asthenosphere. B) AM radio broadcasts. C) various weather phenomena. D) the interaction of the solar wind and upper layers of the Earth's atmosphere.

Q: Earth's magnetosphere is generated by A) nuclear fusion in Earth's core. B) nuclear fission in Earth's core. C) dynamo-like motions in Earth's interior. D) gravitational accretion.

Q: On its way to Earth, the solar wind first encounters A) the atmosphere. B) the magnetosphere. C) Earth's surface. D) the lower atmosphere.

Q: A magnetic disturbance on the Sun's surface is called A) the electromagnetic spectrum. B) the solar wind. C) a sunspot. D) a magnetospheric cyclone.

Q: Which of the following is not true of sunspots? A) They can be several times larger than Earth. B) They can produce flares and prominences. C) They are brighter than the rest of the Sun's surface. D) They are surface disturbances caused by magnetic storms.

Q: The Sun gives off electromagnetic radiation because A) matter is converted into energy. B) matter and energy totally annihilate one another in matter-antimatter reactions. C) energy is converted into matter. D) kinetic energy is converted into potential energy.

Q: The Sun produces which of the following? A) mainly visible light and infrared energy B) mainly ultraviolet and X-rays C) only solar wind D) only radiant energy that is beneficial to life

Q: Which of the following is true of the subsolar point? A) The highest latitude at which it occurs is 60 N/S. B) It only occurs at lower latitudes, between the tropics (23.5 N/S). C) It occurs at all latitudes at least once throughout the year. D) It never occurs beyond a few degrees of the equator.

Q: What is the name of the location on the surface of Earth that receives insolation when the Sun is directly overhead? (When this occurs, the Sun's rays are perpendicular to this surface.) A) solar point B) zenith C) subsolar point D) North Polar point

Q: Which of the following is characterized by the longest wavelengths? A) X-rays B) gamma rays C) visible D) thermal infrared E) radio waves

Q: The dominant wavelength of energy emitted by the Sun is A) shorter than that emitted by Earth. B) longer than that emitted by Earth. C) the same length as that emitted by Earth.

Q: The basic idea behind the planetesimal hypothesis is that A) planets form as a direct result of the nuclear fusion of nebular gases and planetesimals. B) planets form from the remains of super-giant planetesimals that undergo nuclear fission and blow apart, thereby creating smaller objectsthe planets. C) early in the solar system's history, a star passed near to the Sun and pulled off gases that eventually condensed to form planets. D) small grains of cosmic dust and other solids gradual accrete to form planetesimals that may grow to become protoplanets and eventually planets.

Q: According to findings from the Kepler telescope, the estimated number of planets in the Milky Way is ________with some ________ in habitable zones. A) 300 billion; 125 billion B) 25 million; 3 million C) 1 billion; 25 million D) 50 billion; 500 million

Q: Which of the following is true of Earth's orbit about the Sun? A) It is perfectly circular. B) It is elliptical. C) It takes approximately the same time for Earth to orbit the Sun as it does for the rest of the planets in the solar system to orbit the Sun. D) The orbit does not vary over millions of years.

Q: Which of the following is not of our solar system? A) It consists of 8 planets and some 165 planetary satellites (moons). B) Of all the planets, Neptune has the most moons. C) Six of the eight planets have at least 1 moon. D) Several identified planetary satellites are still awaiting official confirmation.

Q: Earth and the Sun formed specifically from A) the galaxy. B) unknown origins. C) a nebula of dust and gases. D) other planets.

Q: Which of the following is not true about the Milky Way galaxy in which we live? A) It is a spiral-shaped galaxy. B) It is one of millions of galaxies in the universe. C) It contains approximately 300 billion stars. D) It is the largest galaxy in the universe.

Q: Which of the following is false? A) The Sun and Solar System are part of the Milky Way Galaxy. B) The Sun produces energy through fusion. C) The Sun is by far the largest star in the Milky Way Galaxy. D) The Sun is an average sized yellow star.

Q: Our planet and our lives are powered by A) energy derived from inside Earth. B) radiant energy from the Sun. C) utilities and oil companies. D) shorter wavelengths of gamma rays, X-rays, and ultraviolet.

Q: Which of the following does not accurately describe Earth's distance from the Sun? A) The Earth-Sun distance averages 150 million kilometers (93 million miles). B) It takes light an average of 8 minutes and 20 seconds to travel from the Sun to Earth. C) Earth is closer to the Sun in January (perihelion) and farther away in July (aphelion). D) The Earth's orbit around the sun is presently circular and, therefore the Earth is always equidistant from the sun throughout the year.

Q: The plane of Earth's orbit about the Sun is called A) perihelion. B) aphelion. C) the plane of the ecliptic. D) a great circle.

Q: Light travels at a speed of approximately A) 80,500 kilometers per hour (50,000 mph). B) 300,000 kilometers per hour (186,336 mph). C) 300,000 kilometers per second (186,333 miles per second). D) 1,000,000,000 kilometers per second (621,118,012 miles per second).

Q: ________ is a supermassive black hole sitting in the galatic center of the Milky Way. A) Sagittarius A* B) The Orion Spur C) Messier 31 D) Centaurus A

Q: The planetesimal hypothesis pertains to the formation of the A) universe. B) galaxy. C) planets. D) ocean basins.

Q: Which of the following is true? A) The Sun is the largest star in the Milky Way Galaxy. B) The Milky Way is part of our Solar System. C) The Sun produces energy through fusion processes. D) The Sun is also a planet.

Q: Discuss ways in which anthropogenic climate change affects seasonality.

Q: Draw and label a diagram of the Earth-Sun relationship for the four seasons. Include the average distance from Earth to the Sun, the location of the subsolar point for each seasonal event, and the name and date for each of the solstices and equinoxes.

Q: Why are seasonal changes less noticeable near the equator than at mid-latitudes?

Q: For where you live, how do daylength and the Sun's altitude vary throughout the year?

Q: What is the circle of illumination and the importance thereof.

Q: What primary factors determine the seasons on Earth?

Q: Explain the significance of each of the equinoxes and solstices.

Q: Define these terms: thermopause, insolation, solar constant, subsolar point.

Q: How does the daily insolation received at the top of the atmosphere vary annual from lower to higher latitudes.

Q: Describe the radiation emitted from both the Sun and the Earth in terms of the electromagnetic spectrum.

Q: Describe the causes and consequences of the uneven distribution of insolation.

Q: Why is the light year a useful unit of measurement for astronomical distances?

Q: Longer falls and earlier springs caused by climate change have lengthened the growing season in the United States.

Q: While seasonality can affect humans, humans cannot affect seasonality.

Q: Earth's spherical shape is not a factor with regards to seasonality.

Q: The seasons are caused by the changing amounts of energy received at Earth as a result of Earth's elliptical orbit.

Q: The uneven distribution of insolation at the thermopause is caused by Earth's curvature, with only the subsolar point receiving sunlight from directly overhead.

Q: Lower latitudes experience the greatest seasonal variation throughout an average year.

Q: The sun rises at the North Pole on the March equinox and remains over the horizon for the following six months.

Q: The beginning of the Northern Hemisphere spring occurs when the subsolar point is at the Tropic of Cancer.

Q: The subsolar point's maximum latitude is 47 N/S.

Q: On the northern hemisphere's summer solstice, areas above Arctic Circle are completely within the circle of illumination.

Q: Twilight is the period of diffused light that occurs before sunrise.

Q: The June solstice marks the beginning of the Southern Hemisphere's winter.

Q: The Sun is directly overhead north of 23.5 north latitude twice a year.

Q: All places on Earth experience the same daylength on March 21.

Q: The subsolar point is at the Tropic of Cancer on December 21.

Q: Earth rotates east to west, or clockwise, when viewed from above the North Pole.

Q: The Earth's axial alignment varies throughout the year.

Q: Earth's axis is tilted 23.5 from a perpendicular to the plane of the ecliptic.

Q: The Earth's rotation is gradually slowing.

Q: Rotation is Earth's motion on its axis; revolution is its motion about the Sun.

Q: The speed of the Earth's rotation is fasted at the poles.

Q: Seasonality involves the variability of both daylength and the altitude of the Sun.

Q: The Sun's height in the sky above the horizon is termed its altitude.

Q: The solar constant varies by latitude.

Q: All points on Earth's surface experience the subsolar point at some moment during the year.

Q: The amount of the solar energy received by a given location varies depending upon the season.

Q: The magnetosphere deflects the solar wind toward Earth's two poles.

Q: Intercepted solar energy is called insolation and is measured as the solar constant at the top of the atmosphere.

Q: The Earth radiates energy primarily in the ultraviolet wavelengths.

Q: The Sun's radiant energy is composed primarily of visible light and infrared wavelengths.

Q: The correct order for wavelengths of electromagnetic radiation, from shortest to longest is: X-rays, infrared, radio waves, visible light, and ultraviolet.

Q: Shorter wavelengths tend to have a lower frequency.

Q: Auroras are mainly visible at lower latitudes, from the equator to about 15 N/S.

Q: The Sun emits radiant energy composed almost entirely of ultraviolet and gamma-ray wavelengths.

Q: Auroras are associated with massive bursts of solar wind called coronal mass ejections.

Q: The electromagnetic spectrum of radiant energy travels in waves at the speed of light in all directions from the Sun.

Q: The electromagnetic spectrum only shows the wavelengths associated with solar radiation.

Q: A solar maximum is a period during which sunspots are numerous.

Q: The Sun's principal outputs consist of the solar wind and radiant energy.

Q: The distance from the Sun to Earth does not vary throughout the year.