Download 15. Our Star - UCF Physics

Test #3
• Same types of questions
• Bring a calculator
• Study the other exam
reviews
• What process creates energy in the Sun?
• Why does the Sun’s size remain stable?
• How did the Sun become hot enough for
fusion in the first place?
• What do we mean by the “surface” of the
Sun?
• Know the zones of the Sun.
• Why is energy produced in the Sun at such
a steady rate?
• Why was the Sun dimmer in the distant
past?
• Describe the sunspot cycle.
• What is the solar wind?
• How does solar activity effect humans?
• What is the difference between Luminosity
and Apparent Brightness
• What is a parsec?
• How do you determine distance from
parallax?
• How are stars classified into spectral types
and what determines a star’s spectral type?
• KNOW the stellar types and their order!
• What are the two main elements in all
stars?
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What is the most important property of a star?
What is the Hertzsprung-Russell (HR) diagram?
How do stars differ along the main sequence?
What do stars on the main sequence have in
common?
KNOW the paths on the HR diagram that stars
take during their lifetimes!
What determines the length of time a star spends
on the main sequence?
How do you determine the age of a star cluster?
What factors go into a solar system habitual zone?
What factors go into a galactic habitual zone?
• What basic stellar property determines how a star will
live and die, and why?
• Summarize the “pre-birth” stages of a star’s life.
• What is a brown dwarf?
• What are the major phases of life of a low-mass star?
• How did past red-giant stars contribute to the existence
of life on Earth?
• State several ways in which high-mass stars differ from
low-mass stars.
• How do high-mass stars produce elements heavier than
carbon?
• What causes a supernova?
• Why can’t fusion produce any elements
heavier than iron?
• What is a white dwarf?
• Why can’t white dwarfs weigh more than 1.4
times the mass of the Sun?
• What is a neutron star?
• What is a pulsar?
• What is the maximum mass of a neutron star?
• What is a black hole?
• What observational evidence is there for the
existence of black holes?
• Describe the general structure of the Milky
Way Galaxy.
• Briefly describe the galaxy’s star-gas-star
cycle.
• How do halo stars differ from disk stars?
• How do stellar orbits in the disk differ from
those in the halo?
• Why are spiral arms bright?
• What lies in the center of our galaxy?
• What is Olbers’ paradox?
• What are the three types of galaxies?
• How do you make an elliptical galaxy?
• How is the structure of elliptical galaxies
different from spiral galaxies?
• The bluish-white color of irregular galaxies
tells you what?
• Which galaxy type is often found in huge
clusters of galaxies?
• What happens as a result of galaxy collisions?
• How is the distance between galaxies
different than the distance between stars and
planets?
• What are the five steps in measuring
astronomical distances?
• What is Hubble’s law?
• Is the Universe expanding? Why?
• What are Quasars?
• What are the proportions of normal matter,
dark matter, and dark energy in the
Universe?
• What is the difference between a
Recollapsing, Coasting, Critical, or
Accelerating Universe?
• What is the significance of a rotation curve
that is flat at large distances from the galactic
center?
• What are three pieces of evidence that indicate
that dark matter really exists?
• How does the distribution of dark matter
compare to the distribution of luminous matter
in spiral galaxies?
• What do we mean when we ask whether dark
matter is ordinary or extraordinary matter?
• What are MACHOs, and can they account for
dark matter?
• What are WIMPs, and can they account for
dark matter?
• What are the three pieces of evidence that
support the existence of Dark Energy?
• What is Dark Energy?
• What are the two key lines of evidence
supporting the Big Bang model?
• What is the cosmic microwave background?
• What are the four fundamental forces and
what happened to them at the start of the Big
Bang?
• What is the Miller-Urey experiment?
• What is the age of the Solar System? The
Universe?
• When did life arise on Earth?
• How can we identify life on exoplanets?
• What are the possible solutions of the Fermi
Paradox?