1. Measurements taken from space show the Earth to be A) greatest in diameter at the Equator B) greatest in diameter at the poles C) a perfect sphere D) pear shaped 2. New York State's highest peak, Mt. Marcy, is located at approximately A) 44 10' N 74 05' W B) 44 05' N 73 55' W C) 73 55' N 44 10' W D) 74 05' N 44 05' W 3. Which New York State city is located at 42 39' N 73 45' W? A) Buffalo B) Albany C) Ithaca D) Plattsburgh Base your answers to questions 4 and 5 on the time-exposure photograph shown below. The photograph was taken by aiming a camera at a portion of the night sky above a New York State location and leaving the camera's shutter open for a period of time to record star trails. 4. Which celestial object is shown in the photograph near the center of the star trails? A) the Sun B) the Moon C) Sirius D) Polaris 5. During the time exposure of the photograph, the stars appear to have moved through an arc of 120º. How many hours did this time exposure take? A) 5 h B) 8 h C) 12 h D) 15 h
6. If an observer on Earth views Polaris on the horizon, the observer is located at the A) equator (0 ) B) North Pole (90 N) C) Tropic of Cancer (23.5 N) D) Tropic of Capricorn (23.5 S) 7. At which location is the altitude of Polaris approximately 42? A) Niagara Falls B) Elmira C) Watertown D) Massena 8. What time is it in Greenwich, England (at 0 longitude), when it is noon in Massena, New York? A) 7 a.m. B) noon C) 5 p.m. D) 10 p.m. 9. What could be the approximate location of an observer if he measured the altitude of Polaris to be 41 degrees above the horizon? A) Watertown B) Massena C) Buffalo D) New York City 10. When it is solar noon at a location at 75 W longitude, what is the solar time at a location at 120 W longitude? A) 9 a.m. B) 12 noon C) 3 p.m. D) 12 midnight 11. The length of an Earth day is determined by the time required for approximately one A) Earth rotation B) Earth revolution C) Sun rotation D) Sun revolution 12. The diagram below shows the latitude-longitude grid on an Earth model. Points A and B are locations on the surface. On Earth, the solar time difference between point A and point B would be A) 1 hour B) 5 hours C) 12 hours D) 24 hours 13. Approximately how many degrees does the Earth rotate on its axis in 1 hour? A) 1º B) 15º C) 24º D) 360º 14. What is the total number of degrees that the Earth rotates on its axis during a 12-hour period? A) 1 B) 15 C) 180 D) 360
Base your answers to questions 15 and 16 on the passage and map below. The map shows sections of the Atlantic Ocean, the Caribbean Sea, and the Gulf of Mexico. Shipwreck In 1641, the crew of the ship Concepcion used the Sun and stars for navigation. The crew thought that the ship was just north of Puerto Rico, but ocean currents had carried them off course. The ship hit a coral reef and sank off the coast of the Dominican Republic. The Xon the map marks the location of the sunken ship. 15. At which map location does Polaris appear the highest in the nighttime sky? A) Miami, Florida B) Kingston, Jamaica C) Havana, Cuba D) San Juan, Puerto Rico 16. What is the approximate latitude and longitude of the sunken ship? A) 20.5 N 70 E B) 20.5 N 70 W C) 20.5 S 70 E D) 20.5 S 70 W 17. At which New York State location would an observer measure the highest altitude of Polaris? A) New York City B) Slide Mountain C) Niagara Falls D) Plattsburgh
18. The diagram below shows an observer on Earth viewing the star Polaris. 21. The map below shows the location and diameter, in kilometers, of four meteorite impact craters, A, B, C, and D, found in the United States. What is the observer's latitude? A) 38 N B) 38 S C) 52 N D) 52 S 19. At which New York State location will an observer most likely measure the altitude of Polaris as approximately 42? A) Jamestown B) Plattsburgh C) Oswego D) New York City 20. Base your answer to the following question on the map below, which shows the latitude and longitude of five observers, A, B, C, D, and E, on Earth. Which two observers would be experiencing the same apparent solar time? A) A and C B) B and C C) B and E D) D and E What is the approximate latitude and longitude of the largest crater? A) 35 N 111 W B) 39 N 83 W C) 44 N 90 W D) 47 N 104 W 22. Which reference line passes through both the geographic North Pole and the geographic South Pole? A) 0 latitude B) 0 longitude C) Tropic of Cancer D) Tropic of Capricorn 23. Since Denver's longitude is 105 W and Utica's longitude is 75 W, sunrise in Denver occurs A) 2 hours earlier B) 2 hours later C) 3 hours earlier D) 3 hours later 24. Earth's planetary winds curve to the right in the Northern Hemisphere due to A) the Coriolis effect B) the Doppler effect C) the tilt of Earth's axis D) Earth's gravity
25. The red shift of light from most galaxies is evidence that A) most galaxies are moving away from Earth B) a majority of stars in most galaxies are red giants C) the light slows down as it nears Earth D) red light travels faster than other colors of light 26. Which evidence best supports scientists' inferences about the origin and age of the universe? A) the existence of planets B) cosmic background radiation C) formation of star constellations D) similar composition of Earth and the Moon 27. According to astronomers, the age of the universe is estimated to be A) 1.3 billion years B) 4.6 billion years C) 7.9 billion years D) 13.8 billion years 28. Which event occurred approximately 4.6 billion years ago? A) evolution of the earliest fish B) evolution of stromatolites C) formation of the oldest known Earth rocks D) formation of Earth and our solar system 29. Most of a Earth's atmosphere comes from A) the gas surrounding Earth at the time of its formation B) gas released from the interior of our planet C) gas captured as Earth passed through a gas cloud D) escaped gas from the sun 30. In describing a model for the origin of our solar system, which one of the following facts would not be included? A) The planets' orbits lie pretty much in the same plane. B) The planets revolve around the sun in the same direction. C) The Solar system revolves around the center of our galaxy. D) The planets' orbits are mostly close to being circular. 31. Which motion causes the Coriolis effect on Earth? A) revolution of Earth around the Sun B) revolution of the Moon around Earth C) rotation of Earth on its axis D) rotation of the Moon on its axis 32. According to the data below, what is the exact shape of the Earth? A) slightly flattened at both the Equator and the Poles B) slightly bulging at both the Equator and the Poles C) slightly flattened at the Equator and slightly bulging at the Poles D) slightly flattened at the Poles and slightly bulging at the Equator
33. The map below shows four major time zones of the United States. The dashed lines represent meridians of longitude. The locations of New York City and Denver are shown. What is the time in New York City when it is noon in Denver? A) 10 a.m. B) 2 p.m. C) 3 p.m. D) noon
Answer Key Unit 1- fall 2016 1. A 2. B 3. B 4. D 5. B 6. A 7. B 8. C 9. D 10. A 11. A 12. B 13. B 14. C 15. A 16. B 17. D 18. C 19. A 20. C 21. D 22. B 23. B 24. A 25. A 26. B 27. D 28. D 29. B 30. C 31. C 32. D 33. B