Download Astronomy II Study Guide 11 - WW-P K

Astronomy II Study Guide
The Astronomy test will be given on June 1st. If you will not be here on that day, you must notify me
immediately.
Know the following terms and words. If you do not completely understand any word or term, it is YOUR
responsibility to ask questions until you do understand.
Models
Scales - size, distance, AND position
The Milky Way Galaxy
What makes up our galaxy, the Milky Way?
Where is our solar system in the galaxy? Why is this beneficial?
The Night Sky
Moon's reflected light and moon phases
Stars vs. galaxies
Auroras - cause?
Why can I see the Moon during the day?
Gravity (the force of) - What factors determine its strength?
What effect did it have on the formation of the universe?
What effect does it have on the existing form of the universe/galaxies/solar systems/stars,
nebular clouds, star formation, etc.
Stars
How can we say that your body and mind are made of stardust?
Sun
How does it compare to other stars?
How old is it?
How did it form?
What goes on in the Sun? Sunspots?
Sun anatomy (layers) - What can we see and not see from Earth?
Fusion and energy - What is involved? What is the result? What is needed?
Solar Eclipse
Earth
Why is life possible?
What is "life"?
How is the Sun's energy responsible for life?
Night and Day - causes and changes in length
Seasons - relative position of Earth and Sun for each season
Atmosphere - Role gravity plays
- greenhouse effect - causes
Rotation vs. Orbit - what is the difference?
Axis - effects
Magnetic Field - Why do we have one and what does it do?
Moon
How formed - theories
Effects on Earth
Phases - Waxing, Waning, Crescent, Gibbous?
Eclipses of
Relative speed of orbit and rotation - effect of this synchrony
Tides - causes, types, and effects
Be able to answer these questions:
1. Why does the same side of the moon always face Earth?
2. What causes the moon’s phases? Why does everyone on Earth see the same phase on the
same night?
3. What is a crescent moon?
4. What is a gibbous moon?
5.
What does it mean when we say the moon is “waxing?”
6.
What does it mean when we say the moon is “waning?”
7.
What is a waxing crescent? What is a waning crescent? What is a waxing gibbous? What is a
waning gibbous?
8.
If the moon is waning, which side of the moon (right or left as you look up at it) will be lit and
which side will be dark?
9.
If the moon is waning, which side of the moon (right or left as you look up at it) will be lit and
which side will be dark?
10. What happens to an orbiting object’s speed as it moves into a more distant orbit (farther away)?
For example, as the moon moves farther and farther away from Earth, what will change?
11. What is a light year? Why are they used in astronomy?
12. What causes tides, and how does a neap tide differ from a spring tide?
13. What causes a black hole? What is the event horizon?