What shape is the moon's orbit around Earth?
a. an ellipse that is elongated
b. a spiral
c. an ellipse that is almost circular
d. a circle
c. an ellipse that is almost circular
Which did Kepler notice FIRST about planetary motion that caused him to propose Kepler’s first law of orbital motion?
a. The planets have circular orbits.
b. The distance between Mars and the sun is constant.
c. The planets speed up and slow down but cover the same area.
d. Most planets have highly elliptical orbits.
c. The planets speed up and slow down but cover the same area.
For which project would knowledge of Kepler's laws prove most useful?
a. determining the structure of the solar system's planets
b. putting a communications satellite in Earth orbit
c. calculating the mass of Earth
d. measuring the distance between Earth and the moon
b. putting a communications satellite in Earth orbit
A line between a planet and the sun sweeps out two equal areas at different places as it moves along its orbit. Which factor remains constant as this happens?
a. the time the planet takes to sweep out the areas
b. the distance from the sun to the planet while it sweeps out the areas
c. the planet’s speed as it sweeps out the areas
d. the energy required to sweep out the areas
c. the planet’s speed as it sweeps out the areas
A highly eccentric orbit, such as a comet, will have an eccentricity of 0.
true
false
False. A highly eccentric orbit, such as a comet, will typically have an eccentricity greater than 0.
Where is the sun located on Earth’s elliptical orbit?
a. at the aphelium
b. at the perihelium
c. at a focus
d. at the center of the two foci
c. at a focus
Which of the eight planets in the solar system has the most elliptical orbit?
a. Mercury
b. Venus
c. Earth
d. Mars
a. Mercury
There are two objects close to each other. If the mass of one of the objects is doubled while the distance remains the same, how does the gravitational force change?
a. It becomes four times stronger
b. It becomes half as strong
c. It remains the same
d. It becomes twice as strong
d. It becomes twice as strong
Which is the LEAST eccentric orbit?
e=0.001
e=0.90
e=1
e=0.25
e=0.001
The acceleration of a satellite can be derived by equating the universal gravitational force and the centripetal force.
true
false
True
Select the correct words to fill in the blanks to this sentence: As a planet draws away from the sun in its orbit, the gravity pull from the sun pulls _________on the planet and the planet's speed _________.
a. forwards, decreases
b. backwards, decreases
c. backwards, increases
d. forwards, increases
b. backwards, decreases
Why was the geocentric model accepted for more than a thousand years?
a. It correctly explained the motion of the planets.
b. It correctly described the solar system.
c. It was confirmed by astronomers using telescopes.
d. It correctly explained the distribution of the stars.
a. It correctly explained the motion of the planets.
An asteroid approaches Jupiter and is slung into a new trajectory around across the solar system. If it's eccentricity is greater than 1, which statement might be true?
a. The asteroid slows down as it passes around Jupiter.
b. The asteroid continues out of the solar system, never to return.
c. The asteroid adopts an unusual orbit around the sun, such as an egg shape.
d. The asteroid falls into an regular orbit around Jupiter instead of the sun.
b. The asteroid continues out of the solar system, never to return.
Which was a belief of Copernicus's model of the solar system?
a. The planets move in perfect circles.
b. All planets orbit the Sun at the same speed.
c. The outer planets move in epicycles.
d. Earth is fixed to a crystalline sphere.