DEPARTMENT OF ASTRONOMY UNIVERSITY OF FLORIDA

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1 DEPARTMENT OF ASTRONOMY UNIVERSITY OF FLORIDA AST-3043 Exam # 1 - Test Form A Section 4053 Spring, 2012 Periods: MWF5 Feb. 10 Special Code 05 Dr. Haywood Smith NAME (PRINT): Last, First, I The scores for this exam will be posted on the website of your instructor. Due to student privacy laws, the scores will be posted by the five digit code found in the upper left corner of each page. Each exam has a UNIQUE code number. However, other Astronomy sections use this exam format and may use the same exam code numbers. IT IS THEREFORE IMPORTANT THAT YOU MAKE SURE THAT THE SCORE YOU READ BELONGS TO YOU. The instructor s name and the exam number will be clearly marked on each exam score listing. As you turn in your exam, tear off this page and save it for future reference. Itwillaid you in finding your score when the exam scores are posted. Also, should you have any questions about the exam after it is graded, the loss of this page will make it difficult to find your exam and delay possible ( but unlikely ) changes to your grade. Should you have any questions, this page MUST be brought with you as a means of identification.

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3 DEPARTMENT OF ASTRONOMY UNIVERSITY OF FLORIDA AST-3043 Exam # 1 - Test Form A Section 4053 Spring, 2012 Periods: MWF5 Feb. 10 Special Code 05 Dr. Haywood Smith NAME (PRINT): Last,First,I SIGNATURE: On my honor, I have neither given nor received unauthorized aid on this examination. My signature above indicates my compliance with this statement. DIRECTIONS: (1) Print name on this page and sign it also (NO NAME = NO SCORE). (2) Code on the Answer Sheet: (IF INCORRECT, SCORE = ZERO) A. Name, UFID No., & Section No. (PROOF THIS VERY CAREFULLY). B. Test Number See the top of your exam pages. (Use spaces on answer sheet for this 5-digit number.) (3) Use a Black No. 2 pencil to record answers Do not use ink. (ONLY ANSWERS RECORDED ON ANSWER SHEETS WILL BE SCORED.) (4) Answer ALL questions ONE answer is correct per question. (Scoring formula = number of correct answers DO NOT LEAVE BLANKS.) (5) Use margins or back of exam question pages for all scratch work. (6) Turn in all exam materials at the end of exam, INCLUDING THE EXAM QUESTION SHEETS. Put figure sheets (if provided with the exam) inside the question sheets. Hand in Green Answer Key SEPARATELY. >>>>> BEFORE YOU TURN IN YOUR EXAM <<<<< Have your student I.D. ready. Show the EXAM to the Proctor so she/he can check the exam code. NOTE: The answer NVA found in some questions means NOT A VALID ANSWER. If you give this response, you may consider that question will be graded automatically WRONG on your test. Your exam consists of 35 questions and begins on the next page. You may start as soon as you have carefully read and UNDERSTOOD the above instructions. You have a total of 50 minutes.

4 1. The celestial meridian is the imaginary circle that (1) runs from the N point on the horizon through the zenith to the S point (2) runs around the celestial sphere midway between the celestial poles (3) the Sun travels along over the year 2. Here in Gainesville, the daily motion caused by Earth s rotation makes stars in the southern sky move (1) in large arcs centered on the South Celestial Pole, which is below the horizon (2) in fairly small arcs around the North Celestial Pole, centered almost but not quite on Polaris (3) straight up and down as they rise and set 3. Which of the following is evidence that the Sun is moving N and S with respect to the celestial sphere and the fixed stars? (1) it rises and sets at different points on the horizon over the courseoftheyear (2) different constellations are visible at different times over the year (for example, summer and winter) (3) with special glasses (to protect one s eyes) one can see it movenands 4. The approximate date of the winter solstice is (1) Dec. 21 (2) June 21 (3) [it depends on which hemisphere one is in]

5 5. The equatorial coordinate that is measured N or S of the celestial equator is (1) declination (2) celestial latitude (3) right ascension 6. The sidereal year is defined as the time for (1) the Sun to go completely around the celestial sphere with respect to the fixed stars (2) the Sun to go completely around the celestial sphere with respect to the vernal equinox (3) any fixed star to go completely around the celestial sphere withrespecttothevernal equinox 7. The Moon s phase midway between first quarter and full is (1) waxing gibbous (2) waning gibbous (3) waning crescent 8. The Moon when it is at third or last quarter will set approximately at (1) noon (2) midnight (3) 6 p.m.

6 9. The synodic month is about days, while the nodical month is about The difference is because days. (1) the Sun and Moon are both moving eastwards while the Moon s ascendingnodeis moving westwards (2) the Sun is moving eastwards while the Moon and its ascending node are both moving westwards (3) the Sun and the Moon s ascending node are both moving eastwards, but the Sun is moving faster 10. The Moon s major standstills occur when (1) its ascending node lies on top of the vernal equinox (2) its ascending node lies on top of the autumnal equinox (3) it runs into a dense interstellar cloud that temporarily stops it in its tracks 11. Which of the following was something new that the astronomer Gerald Hawkins brought to the study of Stonehenge? (1) the digital computer (2) careful measurements of the stones locations and dimensions (3) painstaking analysis of astronomical references in the writings of ancient Druids 12. Which of the following is almost certainly not true about Stonehenge? (1) the builders used the Aubrey holes to predict eclipses (2) the builders deliberately marked the direction of summer solstice(ormidsummer) sunrise with the Heel Stone (3) the site was set aside as sacred ground by the ditch and bank

7 13. Newgrange has burnt human bones inside; those along with the particular alignment of the passageway are connected with (1) death and rebirth (2) fertilization and the beginning of the growing season (3) night 14. Which of the following has an alignment of its central axis with the Pleiades rising point? (1) the Coricancha in Cuzco (2) the so-called Palace of the Governor (temple of Kukulcan) inuxmal (3) the Great Pyramid at Giza 15. There is a one-to-one correspondence of the huacas in Cuzco s ceque system with days of the year except for 37 days in May and June. Those 37 days are the ones when (1) the Pleiades are invisible because they re too close to the Sun (2) Venus is invisible because it s too close to the Sun, around the time of superior conjunction (3) the Sun stays below the horizon even at midnight 16. The Mayan calendar that has a 360-day "year" is the (1) so-called Long Count used for chronology (2) agricultural calendar or haab approximating the tropical year (3) the calendar with the sacred year or tzolkin

8 17. Which of the following is a superior planet? (1) Mars (2) Venus (3) Earth 18. A superior planet is brightest in the sky (as seen from Earth) when it is at (1) opposition (2) quadrature, either east or west (3) greatest elongation, either east or west 19. The interval between successive heliacal risings of a planet such as Venus is the (1) synodic period of the planet (2) sidereal period of the planet (orbital period) (3) sidereal year 20. The Metonic cycle is an example of (1) intercalation by rule (2) empirical intercalation (3) use of the pure lunar calendar

9 21. The branch of the government astronomy bureau in China that was responsible for keeping track of irregular phenomena in the sky such as comets and meteors was (1) tianwen (2) lifa (3) hsiu 22. Guo Shoujing was the astronomer responsible for (1) the Sky Measuring Scale with the masonry towers (Gaocheng Observatory) (2) a chain of 8-ft gnomons strung out along a meridian of longitude in China (3) the first known star catalogue 23. The ecliptic coordinate that is measured eastwards along the ecliptic from the vernal equinox is (1) celestial longitude (2) right ascension (3) celestial latitude 24. A person located on the Earth where the Moon s umbra passes over sees (weather permitting, of course) a (1) total solar eclipse (2) total lunar eclipse (3) partial lunar eclipse

10 25. Our division of the day into 24 hours goes back to the (1) Egyptians (2) Babylonians (3) Maya 26. The zigzag approximation to represent the variable motion in longitude was invented by (1) Kidinnu (2) Eudoxus (3) Aristotle 27. The saros cycle is associated with (1) eclipses, solar and lunar (2) the phases of Venus (3) the flooding of the Nile 28. Which of the following statements is correct? (1) The Babylonians were able to predict when lunar eclipses would occur, whether they would be partial or total, and the degree of partial eclipses. (2) The Babylonians were able to forecast when lunar eclipses might occur but not predict them for certain. (3) The Babylonians were able to predict when solar and lunar eclipses would occur, whether they would be partial or total, and the degree of partial eclipses.

11 29. The first of the Greeks to consider the nature of the cosmos a subject of contemplation to be understood was (1) Thales (2) Anaxagoras (3) Aristotle 30. The central fire and counter-earth were elements of the cosmological system of (1) Philolaus (2) Pythagoras (3) Plato 31. The hippopede was introduced by Eudoxus to explain (1) the retrograde motions of planets (2) the variable motion in longitude, just like the zigzag approximation (3) the daily motion of the fixed stars 32. In Aristotle s cosmology, the natural motion of the elements in the sublunary realm was (1) vertical, either straight up or straight down (2) uniform circular motion (3) motion in any fixed direction at constant speed

12 33. Which of the following arguments did Aristotle employ against the Earth s revolving around the Sun? (1) argument of parallax (2) argument of fall (3) the circular appearance of Earth s shadow every time there is a lunar eclipse 34. Which of the following can be used to measure both the Sun s altitude and the time of day? (1) gnomon (2) zenith tube (3) water clock 35. The approximate date of Newgrange is (1) 3200 BC (2) 2200 BC (3) 350 BC