Earth's Motions and Seasons: A Comprehensive Guide with Questions and Answers, Exams of Nursing

Download Earth's Motions and Seasons: A Comprehensive Guide with Questions and Answers and more Exams Nursing in PDF only on Docsity! ssa exam one questions well answered already passed What are the different types of motion that the Earth experiences? - correct answer ✔✔1. The Earth rotates about its axis. Rotation is a movement of an object in circular motion about an axis 2. Revolution - orbital motion around the Sun Why do objects in the sky appear to rise in the east and set in the west? - correct answer ✔✔Objects in the sky appear to rise in the east and set in the west because Earth rotates from west to east. Due to this, we, on the Earth's surface, see objects in the sky moving from east to west How does the location of stars appear to change over the course of a year? - correct answer ✔✔The locations of stars appear to change over the course of a year. As the Earth rotates from west to east, the stars appear to rise in the East and then move across the sky to set in the West. The sun will appear to move through the stars, making one complete circuit of the sky in 365 days Why is Polaris important to navigators? - correct answer ✔✔It sits directly over the North Pole and wherever you are in the northern hemisphere, the North Star will be the same angle above the horizon as your latitude and stars How do the North and South Celestial Poles change over time? - correct answer ✔✔When facing North - stars will appear to move counter-clockwise around Polaris, the North Star When facing South - stars will appear to move clockwise around the South Celestial Pole (which is below the horizon and therefore not viewable) What is the main cause of seasons on Earth? - correct answer ✔✔The tilt of Earth on its axis ; As Earth orbits the Sun, its axis continues to point in the same direction relative to background stars, but changes relative to the Sun What do we mean when we say that Earth is tilted? - correct answer ✔✔As Earth revolves around the Sun it is tilted on its invisible axis, which means that the northern hemisphere is sometimes tilted toward the Sun, and sometimes it is tilted away resulting in the seasons we experience How does the tilt of the Earth's axis affect the length of daylight over the course of a year? - correct answer ✔✔We experience longer days during Summer, and shorter days during Winter. The directness of the Sun's rays vary over the year How does the tilt affect the rise and set positions of the Sun over the course of a year? - correct answer ✔✔When the Sun is north of the celestial equator, it rises north of east and sets north of west When the Sun is south of the celestial equator, it rises south of east and sets south of west How does the tilt affect the height of the Sun at noon? - correct answer ✔✔The altitude of the Sun varies from very high in the sky (when the northern hemisphere is pointed towards the Sun) to rather low in the sky (when the southern hemisphere is pointed towards the Sun). The Sun isn't exactly on the meridian at noon either, it may be slightly east or west of this position Is the Sun ever directly overhead at noon? - correct answer ✔✔When the Sun is on the celestial equator it rises exactly due east and sets exactly due west, this happens twice a year on the Equinoxes What is the difference between more direct rays and less direct rays? - correct answer ✔✔More direct rays - shone straight down, small patch illuminated, receives more energy Less direct rays - shone at an angle, illuminates a bigger patch of ground, receives less energy How does the directness of the Sun's rays affect the seasons? - correct answer ✔✔Earth when the northern hemisphere is pointing towards the Sun ; More direct rays are hitting the northern hemisphere resulting in northern summers Less direct rays are hitting the southern hemisphere resulting in southern winter Earth when the northern hemisphere is pointing away from the Sun ; Less direct rays are hitting the northern hemispheres resulting in northern winters More direct rays are hitting the southern hemisphere resulting in southern summers What is the length of day related to? - correct answer ✔✔The rotation of the Earth What is a solar day? - correct answer ✔✔The length of time from one noon until the next day, lasts 24 hours on an average day What is a sidereal day? - correct answer ✔✔Relative to the background stars, the Earth takes only 23 hours, 56 minutes and 4 seconds to rotate While the Earth rotates counterclockwise about its axis, it also does what? - correct answer ✔✔Revolves counterclockwise around the Sun, and because of this, we, on Earth's surface, see objects in the sky slowly moving from east to west over the course of a year, when viewed at the same time every night What is precession? - correct answer ✔✔Due to the Sun's and Moon's gravitational pulls on Earth's bulge, the Earth precesses as it rotates. This is the slow change in the direction of the rotation axis of a spinning body What is the result of precession? - correct answer ✔✔The positions of the North and South Poles change over the course of 26,000 years. In 2000 B.C., Thuban (in the constellation Draco) was the North Pole star What is the length of day from an observer's POV of someone living in the northern hemisphere with the northern hemisphere tilted towards the Sun? - correct answer ✔✔One full day What is the length of day for someone actually on Earth living in the northern hemisphere with the northern hemisphere tilted towards the Sun? - correct answer ✔✔More than half the day What is the length of day for someone actually on Earth living in the northern hemisphere with the southern hemisphere tilted towards the Sun? - correct answer ✔✔Less than half the day What is the analemma? - correct answer ✔✔The path of the Sun on the sky at noon over the year How do astronomers use angular measurements? - correct answer ✔✔To describe how far away one object is from another How many arcminutes are there in a degree? - correct answer ✔✔60 arcminutes How many arcseconds are there in a degree? - correct answer ✔✔3600 arcseconds How were the sizes of the Earth and Moon first determined? - correct answer ✔✔Using basic geometry, Eratosthenes was able to calculate the circumference, then from that the radius of the Earth by determine the distance from Syene to Alexandria The Moon will pass directly between the Earth and Sun, casting a shadow upon the Earth that has a diameter of around 100 km. When the Moon is on the other side Earth from the Sun, it passes through Earth's shadow. When it does, the Earth's shadow is roughly 2.5 times wider than the Moon If the shadow of the Moon tapers from one moon-diameter to essentially zero over the same distance that the Earth's shadow tapers to 2.5 moon-diameters, that suggests that the Earth is roughly 3.5 moon- diameters big, or 3.5 times bigger than the Moon How does the size of the Sun compare to the size of the Earth? - correct answer ✔✔The diameter of the Sun is around 1.4 million km. This means that you could fit 109 Earth's end-to-end across the diameter of the Sun. In terms of volume, you could fit over one million Earth's inside of the Sun How can we determine the distance to the Moon? - correct answer ✔✔Using similar triangles, the ratio of the diameters is equal to the ratio of the distances. Using this method, we can determine the distance to the Moon How can we determine the distance to the Sun? - correct answer ✔✔When the moon is in its Quarter Moon phase, the angle between the Earth & Sun is exactly 90 degrees. If we measure the angle between the Moon and Sun at this time, we can use basic trigonometry to determine the distance to the Sun How does the spacing of the planets change with distance from the Sun? - correct answer ✔✔The planets are note evenly distributed throughout space. The spacing increases as you move farther out in the solar system Angular Measurements - correct answer ✔✔Used to refer to angular distances between objects or angular sizes of objects instead of linear distances How far away is the Earth from the Sun? - correct answer ✔✔It would take almost 108 Suns, lined up side-by-side, in order to reach the orbit of the Earth How do we define the average distance between the Earth and the Sun? - correct answer ✔✔One astronomical unit (AU). 1 AU roughly equals 1.5 x 108 km, or 150 million kilometers What is our universal address? - correct answer ✔✔Earth - Solar System - Solar Interstellar Neighborhood - Milky Way Galaxy - Local Galactic Group - Virgo Supercluster - Local Supercluster - Observable University What is the scientific method and how do astronomers use it? - correct answer ✔✔Astronomers use it propose theories and strengthen laws. The proof of a scientific theory is a cyclic process, consisting of three parts : 1. Form a hypothesis based on observations, experiments, and existing, well supported laws and theories 2. Test the hypothesis - make predictions and test with observations and experiments 3. The hypothesis either gains strength with consistency results or it is revised and retested Who discovered that the Earth was round? - correct answer ✔✔Eratosthenes was able to determine that the Earth was round and measure the size of the Earth with a few simple measurements and geometric calculations He discovered that at noon on the summer solstice, a vertical stick in the city of Syene cast no shadow, while at the same time, a shadow was cast in the more northern town of Alexandria What is a planisphere? - correct answer ✔✔A map of the sky, or better known as a star chart. A planisphere has compass directions on it, just like a map, but appear to be "backwards" because it needs to be held over your head with the front facing down to be used above the North Pole. If you can find Polaris, you can find due North. The altitude of Polaris is equal to your latitude on Earth Apparent size is inversely proportionate to what? - correct answer ✔✔Distance Apparent size is directly proportional to what? - correct answer ✔✔Actual size How long does it take the Sun to complete one circuit of the ecliptic? - correct answer ✔✔One year Toward what direction would you look to view an object located at your zenith? - correct answer ✔✔Directly overhead In Huntsville, when will the Sun rise exactly due east and set exactly due west? - correct answer ✔✔On the first day of spring and the first day of fall (the Equinoxes) Which of the following is FALSE. When the northern hemisphere is tilted away from the Sun ; - correct answer ✔✔The Sun is higher in the sky at noon According to the figure, what season is the northern hemisphere currently experiencing? - correct answer ✔✔Winter Perihelion is the point in a planetary orbit at which what is true about the planet? - correct answer ✔✔It is closest to the Sun Through which of the following constellations will the Sun NOT appear to move over the course of a year? - correct answer ✔✔Ursa Major That Polaris will not always be the pole star is due to ; - correct answer ✔✔The precession of the Earth shifting its celestial poles When the Sun's rays shine less directly on Earth ; - correct answer ✔✔Sunlight strikes the ground at an angle The main reason why we have summer in the northern hemisphere around July is primarily due to the fact that ; - correct answer ✔✔The northern hemisphere is tilted toward the Sun in July, causing it to be significantly closer to the Sun than the southern hemisphere Approximately how much larger in diameter is the Sun compared to Earth? - correct answer ✔✔About 100 times larger What are constellations? - correct answer ✔✔Groups of stars that make an apparent pattern in the sky Which of the following is correctly listed in order of smallest to largest? - correct answer ✔✔Earth, Solar System, Galaxy, Universe The cornerstones of the scientific method are ; - correct answer ✔✔Observation, theory, and testing What is the range of values that the coordinate declination can have? - correct answer ✔✔-90 to +90 degrees How are the planets arranged in distance from the Sun? - correct answer ✔✔The inner (terrestrial) planets are spaced closely together while the spacing between planets becomes greater farther away from the Sun How many arc minutes are there in a degree? - correct answer ✔✔60 Which of the following stars will always be a circumpolar star for anyone living in the northern hemisphere? - correct answer ✔✔Polaris 0 degrees Right Ascension is defined to occur at which point on the Celestial Equator? - correct answer ✔✔The Vernal Equinox The Vernal Equinox occurs in the month of ; - correct answer ✔✔March Two objects are the same height, but object A appears bigger than object B. Which object is farther away? - correct answer ✔✔Object B Given a 1-foot basketball and a 3-inch orange as your Earth and Moon, how far apart should you place them? - correct answer ✔✔30 feet Given a 1-foot basketball Sun, how far away from Earth would it be? - correct answer ✔✔110 feet Which of the following is true of the Sun at noon on a given day? - correct answer ✔✔It is at its highest point in the sky, it is crossing the meridian, you have to face due south to see it directly in front of you, ALL OF THE ABOVE About how long does it take the Earth to rotate once around its axis? - correct answer ✔✔24 hours About how long does it take for a circumpolar star to appear to move through one complete circle around Polaris? - correct answer ✔✔24 hours A sidereal day is the length of time ; - correct answer ✔✔Between the time a certain star rises one day and the time it rises the next day About how long does it take the Earth to revolve once around the Sun? - correct answer ✔✔1 year Over the course of 6 hours, through how much of its orbit will the Earth have moved around the Sun? - correct answer ✔✔Barely at all The Earth revolves around the Sun in a counter-clockwise direction, moving 1 degree per day (360 degrees per 365 days). This motion causes the Sun to appear to move how much? - correct answer ✔✔1 degree per day eastwards An observer in Lincoln Nebraska (latitude = 41 degrees N) sees three stars rising on the eastern horizon. Which of these stars might later pass through the zenith point? - correct answer ✔✔One on the farthest left