Practice Exam Part 4

1. The Milky Way is similar in many ways to M31, the Andromeda Galaxy. a) True b) False

2. Our Sun lies about 30,000 light years out from the Galactic Center. a) True b) False 3. The Earth lies close to the center of the Galaxy. a) True b) False 4. The longer the period of pulsation for a Cepheid, the more massive and luminous the variable giant star is. a) True b) False 5. Because of their greater luminosity, RR Lyrae stars can be used at greater distances than can long-period Cepheids. a) True b) False 6. William Herschel's original disk model placed us close to the center of the Galaxy. a) True b) False 7. All Cepheids are giants, but not all giant stars are Cepheid variables. a) True b False. 8. In structure, our Milky Way is most similar to? A) the Large Magellanic Cloud. B) an upscale version of a globular cluster. C) M31, the Andromeda Galaxy. D) the Orion nebula. E) none of these. 9. All RR Lyrae stars have about the same A) period of six hours. B) distance of 32 light years. C) galactic location and speed. D) luminosity of about 100 Suns. E) locations in the centers of globular star clusters. 10. The first attempt to map the Galaxy via star counts was done by A) Galileo in 1612. B) William Herschel in the late eighteenth century. C) Edward Barnard with long exposure photos about 1900. D) Harlow Shapley with the RR Lyrae variables in 1920.

E) Edwin Hubble with the new 100" Mt. Wilson telescope in the 1930s. 11. The RR Lyrae stars all have periods of A) less than a second. B) a few minutes. C) a few hours. D) a few days. E) a few weeks. 12. Which of the following are most massive and luminous A) brown dwarfs B) RR Lyrae variables C) white dwarfs D) T-Tauri variables E) Cepheid variables 13. A star in the instability strip of the H-R diagram would A) vary in both temperature and radius. B) explode as a Type I supernova. C) vary in temperature and brightness, but not in radius. D) vary in brightness with an irregular pattern. E) vary in temperature and radius, but not in brightness 14. For finding the distances to globular clusters, Harlow Shapley used A) eclipsing binaries. B) planetary nebulae. C) Type I supernovae. D) RR Lyrae variables. E) Population I classical Cepheids. 15. Why was Herschel's strategy for mapping our Galaxy flawed? A) His infrared telescopes couldn't penetrate the dust clouds. B) He used globular clusters, lying above the dust in the disc. C) He relied on visual wavelengths, which are obscured by dust. D) He used radio telescopes that didn't give enough resolution. E) He assumed Earth was at the extreme edge of the Galaxy. 16. Which of these variable stars would be classified as a RR Lyrae? A) a K giant with a period of 14 days B) an F giant with a period of 14 hours C) an M giant with a period of 140 days D) a B supergiant with a period of 0.14 days E) a pulsar with a period of 0.14 seconds 17. Which is the correct description of the Sun's location within the Milky Way ? A) at the outer edge of the galactic bulge but in the plane of the disc B) in the disc but at its outer edge C) as Herschel found, very close to the Galactic center D) above the disc and about one-third of the galactic radius from the center

E) in the disc and about one-half a galactic radius from the center 18. The period-luminosity relation is critical in finding distances with A) RR Lyrae stars. B) trigonometric parallaxes. C) spectroscopic parallaxes. D) Cepheid variables. E) pulsars.. 19. What is one of the differences between Cepheids and RR Lyrae variables A) Cepheids are giants, but RR Lyrae stars are still on the main sequence. B) All Cepheids have the same brightness, but RR Lyrae stars vary greatly in luminosity. C) The period-luminosity relation holds only for RR Lyrae stars. D) The pulsations of RR Lyrae stars are much less regular than those of Cepheids. E) The RR Lyrae stars have much shorter periods than Cepheids. 20. Harlow Shapley found the Milky Way was A) centered on the Earth. B) much smaller than previously thought. C) rapidly expanding. D) much larger than previously thought. E) uniformly spherical in shape. 21. Which statement is true? A) Our Sun is a Population II star. B) The bright blue stars that dominate the sky are Population I stars. C) Population I stars lie outside the galactic disc. D) Population I stars are the brightest stars in the globular clusters. E) Population II stars probably have terrestrial planets around them. 22. Which statement about Population II is false? A) They are made of almost nothing but hydrogen and helium. B) Their orbits around the Galaxy resemble those of comets. C) They formed first as the Galaxy formed. D) At almost five billion years old, our Sun must belong to this older Population. E) The globular clusters are their most obvious groupings. 23. Galactic disks appear blue because A) they contain no G, K, or M dwarfs. B) they contain only blue reflection nebulae. C) dust obscures the longer, red, wavelengths. D) O and B blue giants are much brighter than G, K, or M dwarfs. E) dark matter gravitationally shifts all wavelengths towards the blue. 24. From the Sun, the distance to the Galactic Center is about A) 8,000 light years. B) 8 kpc. C) 100,000 light years. D) 225 million light years.

E) 100 billion parsecs. 25. The Galactic Year is the time for our solar system to orbit the Galaxy; it is about A) 15 million years. B) 225 million years. C) 4.5 billion years. D) 9.6 billion years. E) 13.5 billion years. 26. What is true about the stellar populations in the Galaxy? A) Only old stars are found in the halo. B) The main star forming regions are outside the Galactic plane. C) The bluest stars are in the halo. D) Red stars are only found in the bulge. E) Most open clusters are in the halo. 27. Detailed measurements of the disk and central bulge region of our Galaxy suggest our Milky Way is a A) normal spiral galaxy. B) barred spiral galaxy. C) very flat elliptical galaxy. D) very dusty irregular galaxy. E) quasar. 28. Which of these objects have not been found in the Galactic Halo. A) RR Lyrae variables B) planetary nebulae C) emission nebulae D) Population II stars E) globular clusters 29. Between us and the Galactic Center, the Milky Way has a mass of A) several hundred thousand Suns. B) one to two million Suns. C) 250 million Suns. D) 100 billion Suns. E) over a trillion Suns. 30. Which of these is not typical of the Galaxy's spiral arms? A) hot, young blue Population I stars B) emission nebulae like M42 C) O and B stars D) open clusters E) Population II giants like orange Arcturus 31. In the formation of our Galaxy, the ________ formed first. A) galactic disk B) galactic center C) globular clusters

D) planetary nebulae E) spiral arms 32. The visible color of the direction to the Galactic Center is A) blue from the OB associations in the Sagittarius arm. B) yellow from the old Population II stars in the Galactic Bulge. C) red from the emission nebulae. D) black from the dust clouds. E) brown from the dwarfs in the dark matter. 33. Most of the new star formation in the Galaxy is found in the A) halo. B) spiral arms. C) bulge. D) galactic center. E) globular clusters. 34. Density waves may explain A) the lack of blue stars in the halo. B) the random orbits of halo stars. C) the density of red stars in the bulge. D) the spiral arm structure of the Galaxy. E) the large number of open clusters in the halo. 35. What two observations allow us to calculate the Galaxy's mass? A) the Sun's mass and velocity in orbit of the Galactic Center B) the Sun's age and period of the Galactic Year C) the Sun's orbital velocity and its distance from the Galactic Center D) the Sun's mass and its age E) the Sun's composition and luminosity 36. What observations suggest the mass of the Galaxy goes much farther out than its visible disc? A) 21-cm maps of the spiral arms B) the rotation curve of the outermost portions of the disc C) the orbits of the open clusters in the disc D) infrared observations of distant brown dwarfs E) X-ray images of other galaxies' discs from Chandra 37. Most of the mass of our Galaxy lies A) between Earth and the Galactic center. B) in the bright spiral arms. C) outside the luminous part of the Milky Way Galaxy. D) at the galactic center. E) within the bulge. 38. Which method relies on the mass of a dark object revealing its presence? A) asteroidal occultations B) ring occultations C) stellar eclipses

D) temporary brightening of a distant star by a gravity lens E) pulsars slowing down irregularly 39. Most of the mass of the Milky Way seems to exist in the form of A) population I stars in the disk. B) population II stars in the Halo. C) hydrogen gas in the disk and spiral arms. D) dark matter out in the Halo. E) the black hole in the Galactic Center. 40. At the center of our Galaxy lies A) an intensely bright visible superstar. B) a black hole of millions of solar masses. C) a huge emission nebula. D) the largest of all globular clusters. E) a quasar. 41. The radio source ________ is located in a place consistent with the center of our Galaxy. A) Cygnus X-1 B) 3C 273 C) 47 Tucanae D) M8, the Lagoon Nebula E) Sgr A* 42. Despite varying masses, all spiral galaxies look essentially the same A) True. B) False

43. Unlike spirals, elliptical galaxies do not contain a flattened disk. A) True B) False

44. Among the ellipticals, E0 looks the most like huge globular star clusters. A) True B) False 45. There are more giant elliptical than dwarf galaxies. A) True B) False 46. Most galaxies are spirals. A) True B) False 47. Irregulars typically have very few blue stars A) True B) False

48. Irregular galaxies, although small, have large star-forming (HII) regions and much ongoing star formation for their size. A) True B) False 49. The Local Group of galaxies spans about 30 million light years in diameter A) True B) False

50. The Milky Way is smaller than most members of the Local Group A) True B) False

51. The Virgo Cluster of galaxies is smaller than the Local Group A) True B) False 52. Virtually all galaxies are moving away from the Milky Way. A) True B) False

53. Hubble found a direct relation between a galaxy's velocity and distance. A) True B) False

54. Quasars can emit thousands of times as much energy as normal galaxies. A) True B) False 55. The central engine of an active galaxy is less than a parsec in diameter A) True B) False 56. Quasars are the brightest objects in the universe . A) True B) False

57. Seyfert galaxies are the type that produce gravitational lensing A) True B) False

58. Active galaxies emit most of their radiation as visible light? A) True B) False

59. When observing a quasar, we are probably looking at a stage of evolution in the very early universe A) True B) False 60. Quasars appear to have very large red shifts, and receding at nearly the speed of light. A) True B) False 61. On average, active galaxies are rare and most are fairly distant from us. A) True B) False 62. Seyferts are spirals with quasar-like nuclei. A) True B) False

63. Centaurus A, with two large radio lobes, is an active galaxy. a) True b) False 64. A spherical galaxy, like M87, which looks like a monster globular cluster, is type A) S0. B) ES. C) E0. D) ES1. E) 0V. 65. The flattest of the ellipticals are class A) E0. B) SBO. C) E7. D) E9. E) SBF. 66. Which property is common to spiral galaxies? A) ongoing star formation and emission nebula in the arms B) ongoing star formation and emission nebula in the halo C) globular clusters in the nucleus D) open clusters in the halo E) very little internal structure 67. The astronomer who originally classified galaxies into Spiral, Elliptical , and Irregular was A) William Herschel. B) Harlow Shapley. C) Henrietta Leavitt. D) Edwin Hubble. E) Carl Sagan.

68. In this diagram, the galaxy at the left side is a(n)

. A) Seyfert. B) spiral. C) barred spiral. D) elliptical. E) irregular. 69. Compared to our own Galaxy, elliptical galaxies A) show more internal structure. B) have bluer stars. C) have more dust. D) have no arms, but a better defined disk. E) show no evidence of ongoing star formation. 70. The Milky Way is often considered to be an intermediately wound, barred spiral, which would be type ________ according to Hubble. A) E4 B) SBb C) Sa D) SBV E) B2S 71. In shape and component stars, elliptical galaxies are most like our own. A) galactic center. B) spiral arms. C) nuclear bulge. D) halo. E) companions, the Magellanic Clouds. 72. What is true of giant and dwarf elliptical galaxies? A) There are more giants than dwarfs. B) The dwarfs contain more total mass than the giants. C) The giants contain more total mass than the dwarfs. D) They contain more dust than spirals. E) The giants are mostly blue, the dwarfs are mostly red.

73. A galaxy with little cool gas or dust and no evidence of ongoing star formation is most likely a(n) A) elliptical. B) spiral. C) barred spiral. D) irregular. E) Seyfert. 74. Which of the following is not one of Hubble's types of galaxies? A) normal spirals B) barrel spirals C) Seyfert spirals D) irregular type II E) dwarf ellipticals 75. You observe a spiral galaxy with a large central bulge and tightly wrapped arms. It would be classified a A) Sc. B) Sb. C) Sa. D) SO. E) E7. 76. Which of these would be made up of only Population II stars A) elliptical galaxies B) Irr type I C) Irr type II D) barred spirals E) Seyfert spirals

77. What is true of the Local Group? A) The Andromeda galaxy is a satellite of the Milky Way. B) The giant ellipticals are the largest members. C) It consists of mostly spirals. D) The Andromeda galaxy (M31), and the Milky Way are the two largest galaxies. E) It contains about 2500 galaxies. 78. Within the boundaries of the constellations Coma and Virgo are found A) all the galaxies in the Local Group. B) the most distant known quasars. C) the largest nearby superclusters of galaxies. D) the closest red dwarfs to the Sun. E) the Large and Small Magellanic Clouds. 79. About how many galaxies are presently known in our Local Group? A) 3 B) 27

C) 45 D) 107 E) 254 80. What is the nearest huge cluster of thousands of galaxies, to which the Local Group may belong? A) The Great Wall B) Coma Cluster C) Virgo Cluster D) Corona Borealis Cluster E) Sagittarius Cluster 81. The Tully-Fisher relation exists between the galaxy's luminosity and its A) color. B) age. C) rotation. D) mass. E) size. 82. Which statement about the Local Group is false ? A) It contains about 45 member galaxies. B) Its notable spirals include the Milky Way, M31, and M33. C) Most of its members are dwarf elliptical and irregular galaxies. D) It contains the large radio galaxy Centaurus A. E) It is about three million light years across. 83. According to Hubble's Law, a galaxy with a velocity of 25,000 km/s will be

A) 100 million pcs away. B) 400 million pcs away. C) 700 million pcs away. D) 1000 million pcs away. E) less than1 million pcs away. 84. According to Hubble's Law, the greater a galaxy's redshift, the A) closer it is to us. B) younger it is. C) faster it's approaching us.

D) farther it is from us. E) greater its mass. 85. While examining the spectrum of a galaxy, you find all the hydrogen lines are shifted to longer wavelengths. This galaxy is A) moving away from us. B) moving towards us. C) expanding explosively. D) blue shifted. E) not forming new stars. 86. The nearest lobe radio galaxy to our Milky Way is A) the Whirlpool, M51. B) Centaurus A. C) M13 in Hercules. D) M42 in Orion. E) M87 in Virgo. 87. The key to finding quasar's distances was A) a Type I supernova in the spiral arm of 3C87. B) the huge red shifts of the hydrogen lines in 3C273. C) planetary nebula in M51. D) the luminosity of 3C52 from the Doppler shift and the Fisher-Tully relation. E) globular clusters in the halo of M87 in Virgo. 88. What is true of the lobes of a radio galaxy? A) They are perpendicular to the galactic plane. B) They are hotter than the galactic core. C) They radiate primarily in the X-ray. D) They extend out along the galactic plane. E) They form close to the edge of the galaxy. 89. In the gap between quasars and normal spirals lie A) lobe radio galaxies. B) Irr II galaxies. C) S0 galaxies. D) Seyfert galaxies. E) Fisher-Tully galaxies. 90. A billion-solar-mass black hole would still have a radius of only A) 20 AU. B) 15 pc. C) 150 kilometers. D) 3 kpc. E) two million light years. 91. Although theory says a massive black hole with an accretion disk should be emitting X-rays, many black holes emit

A) mostly in the infrared. B) only in the visible. C) mainly in the gamma. D) virtually no radiation at all. E) equally across the entire electromagnetic spectrum. 92. Not only does the central engine of active galaxies and quasars require a black hole, but also ________ to provide the radiate energy. A) globular clusters for food B) a very strong magnetic field from neutron stars C) a source of high-energy electrons for synchrotron radiation D) an accretion disk of infalling matter E) a high rate of rotation for the black hole 93. When mass is accreted into a black hole, how much total mass-energy can be radiated away? A) 0.007% B) 0.08% C) 1.4% D) 20% E) 50% 94. In going from Sa to Sc, the size of the ________ reduces significantly. A) nuclear bulge B) quasars C) radio lobes 95. Hubble divided the spirals into normal and ________ categories. a) barred b) active c) quasar d) black hole 96. A tightly wound barred spiral would be classified as ________. a) SBa b) Ea c) Sa d) S0 97. The vast majority of galaxies in the universe are ________ and ________. a) dwarf ellipticals , dwarf irregulars b) giant ellipticals, giant spirals c) dwarf irregulars, dwarf spirals d) seyferts , quasars 98. Most of the mass in the universe is dark matter. a) True b) False

99. As with stars, binary galaxy pairs are useful in finding their total mass. a) True b) False 100. For nearby galaxies, determining the rotation curve allows us to calculate the mass. a) True b) False 101. The percentage of dark matter in galactic clusters is less than the percentage in individual galaxies. a) True b) False 102. The stability of clusters of galaxies suggests that there is between 10 and 100 times as much dark matter as visible in the galaxies. a) True b) False 103. The Andromeda galaxy will eventually collide with the Milky Way. a) True b) False 104. In the larger clusters, colliding galaxies tend to pass through one another. a) True b) False 105. When galaxies collide, the large-scale galactic structure is affected, but the individual stars are not. a) True b) False 106. Most galaxies are isolated in space. a) True b) False 107. Galactic evolution is due to collisions between galaxies. a) True b) False 108. Mergers between equally massive galaxies usually produce elliptical galaxies. a) True b) False 109. Like supernovae, quasars must end with a violent explosion. a) True b) False 110. In its early stages, the Milky Way was probably a quasar. a) True

b) False 111. No binary black hole has ever been detected. a) True b) False 112. Astronomers have discovered two black holes in the process of merging. a)True b)False 113. The Milky Way is at the center of our Local Supercluster. a) True b) False 114. When we see a doubling of the image of single quasar, the body creating the gravity lens is just a brown dwarf close to us. a) True b) False 115. The greater the mass of the foreground cluster of galaxies, the more warped the images of the distant galaxies are when they undergo gravitational lensing. a) True b) False 116. Rotation curves for spiral galaxies show A) they are slowing down. B) rotation speed drops off further from the nucleus. C) most have dark halos. D) most of the mass lies in the nucleus. E) no relation to mass. 117. As we look at larger and larger scales in the universe, we find. A) smaller and smaller masses. B) almost exclusively visible matter. C) a larger and larger percentage of the matter is visible. D) a larger and larger percentage of the matter is dark. E) an equal amount of visible and dark matter. 118. Based on galactic rotation curves and cluster dynamics, we think dark matter A) is a minor component of the entire mass of the universe. B) is best detected from the X-rays it produces in the intergalactic medium. C) will have no effect on the fate of the universe. D) comprises over 90% of the entire mass of the universe. E) will doom the universe to collapse, overcoming the redshifts we now observe. Collisions between galaxies are thought to A) have stopped about 5 billion years ago. B) be commonplace. C) have never occurred.

119.

D) be extremely rare. E) have only occurred between 10 and 15 billion years ago. 120. Collisions between galaxies. A) are much rarer than collisions between stars. B) can turn elliptical galaxies into spirals. C) cause large numbers of stars to collide and explode. D) cause the gas and dust clouds to collide, leading to rapid star formation. E) are the best explanation for gamma-ray burst events. 121. What is true of spiral galaxies?. A) They are much less common at larger redshifts. B) They are relatively rare in regions of high galaxy density. C) They are only found in the center of rich galaxy clusters. D) They have never been seen to have large redshifts. E) They evolve from giant ellipticals. 122. Astronomers believe that a spiral galaxy may form. A) from a collision between a small and large galaxy. B) due to a quasar shutting down. C) from the sudden contraction of an elliptical galaxy. D) from the collision of two giant elliptical galaxies. E) from the explosion of a dwarf irregular galaxy. 123. The pregalactic blobs had masses similar to. A) the Earth. B) the Sun. C) dwarf galaxies. D) open clusters of stars. E) the Milky Way. 124. A galaxy that was once a quasar is likely to A) have burned all its fuel by now and be dark. B) now be a dwarf irregular. C) have a black hole at its nucleus. D) still be a quasar. E) be less than 5 billion years old. 125. If the merger theory is correct, the brightest active galactic nuclei should A) be in the smallest elliptical galaxies. B) contain the youngest stars. C) contain the least mass. D) contain supermassive black holes. E) form small irregular galaxies. 126. Gravitational lensing of distant, faint irregular galaxies may be the key to A) mapping the dark matter. B) quasar energy production. C) understanding galactic rotation curves.

D) understanding active galactic nuclei. E) determining galactic redshifts. 127. The absorption or accretion of smaller galaxies into larger ones is called ________. A) galactic cannibalism. B) galactic halo hunting C) accretion disc acquiring D) quasar cannibalism. E) acquiring the unobtanium.

128. The cosmological redshift is a direct measure of the expansion of the universe, thus independent of direction. A) True B) False 129. Hubble's law implies that, at some time in the past, all the galaxies were at one place. A) True B) False

130. The cosmological redshift is not really a velocity at all, but a measure of the expansion of space-time. A) True B) False 131. Like dark matter, the newly-found dark energy will also retard the expansion of the universe. A) True. B) False. 132. From the best current data, we infer the universe is open, and will expand forever. A) True B) False 133. The COBE data allow us to test the isotropy of the universe. A) True B) False 134. The concept that on the grandest of scales, the universe is similar in appearance everywhere is A) special relativity. B) general relativity. C) homogeneity. D) isotropy. E) universality. 135. The concept that the direction of observation does not matter overall is A) relativity. B) homogeneity.

C) universality. D) isotropy. E) geometry. 136. Because almost all galaxies show redshifted spectra, we know that A) our understanding of redshift is wrong. B) we must be at the center of the universe. C) the universe is expanding. D) the sky must be dark at night. E) the universe is closed. 137. The redshift of the galaxies is correctly interpreted as A) a Doppler shift due to the random motions of galaxies in space. B) an aging of light as gravity weakens with time. C) space itself is expanding with time, so the photons are stretched while they travel through space. D) placing our Galaxy near the center of the Local Group. E) the differences in temperatures and star formation in old and young galaxies.

138. What does Hubble's law imply about the history of the universe? A) The universe must be infinitely old and huge. B) The universe had a beginning and has expanded since, giving it a finite age. C) The Milky Way lies exactly at the center of this expansion. D) The redshifts will lengthen with time due to dark energy. E) The redshifts will turn to blueshifts as universe contraction follows the expansion. 139. The presently accepted value of the Hubble constant gives an age of A) 4.5 billion years. B) 8-9 billion years. C) 14 billion years. D) 18 billion years. E) 22 billion years. 140. What temperature has the Big Bang cooled to by now? A) about 3,000 K B) 5,800 K C) about 300 K D) just over 2.7 K E) 1.4 K 141. The discovery of the cosmic microwave background was important because A) it established a firm center of the universe. B) it was experimental verification of a prediction from the Big Bang theory. C) it proved that astronomy at radio wavelengths was possible. D) its detection was a major advance in microwave testing. E) it showed the universe must be closed, with more than the critical density here.

Answers: 1) 2) 3) 4) 5) 6) 7) 8) 9) 10) 11) 12) 13) 14) 15) 16) 17) 18) 19) 20) 21) 22) 23) 24) 25) 26) 27) 28) 29) 30) 31) 32) 33) 34) 35) 36) 37) 38) 39) 40) 41) 42) a a b a b a a c d b c e a d c b e d e d b d d b b a b c d e c b b d c b c d d b e b 43) 44) 45) 46) 47) 48) 49) 50) 51) 52) 53) 54) 55) 56) 57) 58) 59) 60) 61) 62) 63) 64) 65) 66) 67) 68) 69) 70) 71) 72) 73) 74) 75) 76) 77) 78) 79) 80) 81) 82) a a b b b a b b b a a a a a b b a a a a a c c a d d e b d c a c c a d c c c c d 83) b 84) d 85) a 86) b 87) b 88) a 89) d 90) a 91) a 92) d 93) d 94) a 95) a 96) a 97) a 98) a 99) a 100) a 101) b 102) a 103) a 104) a 105) a 106) b 107) a 108) a 109) b 110) b 111) b 112) a 113) b 114) b 115) a 116) c 117) d 118) d 119) b 120) d 121) b 122) a 123) c 124) c 125) d 126) a 127) a 128) a 129) a 130) a 131) b 132) 132) 133) 134) 135) 136) 137) 138) 139) 140) 141) a a c d c c b c d b