CHAPTER 1—HERE AND NOW

Test Bank for Horizons Exploring the Universe,

13th Edition : Seeds
full chapter at: https://testbankbell.com/product/test-bank-for-
horizons-exploring-the-universe-13th-edition-seeds/
MULTIPLE CHOICE

1. How many centimeters are there in one kilometer?

a. 100
b. 1,000
c. 10,000
d. 100,000
e. 1106
ANS: D PTS: 1

2. Scientific notation is used in science because

a. it makes it easy to write big or small numbers.
b. all astronomical distances are expressed in metric units.
c. it makes conversions between units easy.
d. all of the above
ANS: A PTS: 1

3. The average distance from Earth to the sun is

a. 1 ly.
b. 1 million km.
c. 1 million miles.
d. 1 billion km.
e. 1 AU.
ANS: E PTS: 1

4. The sun is
a. a star which generates its own energy.
b. 1 AU from Earth.
c. visible by its own light emission.
d. all of the above.
ANS: D PTS: 1

5. The diameter of a typical star (the sun) is approximately ____ times larger than the diameter of a
typical planet (the Earth).
a. 10
b. 100
c. 1000
d. 10,000
e. 100,000
ANS: B PTS: 1
 6. A typical galaxy like our Milky Way galaxy contains
a. primarily planets.
b. gas only.
c. stars (some with planets), gas, and dust.
d. a single star and planets.
e. thousands of superclusters.
ANS: C PTS: 1

7. The radius of the moon's orbit is about ____ times larger than the radius of Earth.
a. 0.6
b. 6
c. 60
d. 600
e. 6000
ANS: C PTS: 1

8. The Milky Way Galaxy

a. contains about 100 billion stars.
b. is about 200 light-years in diameter.
c. is the largest known object in the universe.
d. all of the above.
e. a and c.
ANS: A PTS: 1

9. 2.9107 is the same as

a. 2.9 thousand.
b. 29 thousand.
c. 290 thousand.
d. 2.9 million.
e. 29 million.
ANS: E PTS: 1

10. 1.65 billion is the same as

a. 1.651012.
b. 1.65109.
c. 1.65106.
d. 1.65105.
e. 1.65103.
ANS: B PTS: 1

11. Arrange the following distances in order from smallest to largest.

I. kilometer
II. light-year
III. yard
IV. Astronomical unit

a. I, II, III, IV
b. IV, III, II, I
c. III, I, IV, II
 d. II, I, IV, III
e. III, I, II, IV
ANS: C PTS: 1

12. It takes light 1.3 seconds to travel from the moon to Earth and 8 minutes to travel from the sun to
Earth. Which of the following statements is true?
a. The sun is 6.2 times further from Earth than the moon.
b. The sun is 10 times further from Earth than the moon.
c. The sun is 0.16 times further Earth than the moon
d. The sun is 0.10 times further from Earth that the moon.
e. The sun is 370 times further from Earth than the moon.
ANS: E PTS: 1

13. If light takes 8 minutes to travel from the sun to Earth and over 4 hours to travel from the sun to the
planet Neptune, what is the distance from the sun to Neptune?
a. 5 AU
b. 30 AU
c. 30 ly
d. 5 ly
e. 0.6 ly
ANS: B PTS: 1

14. In the diagram below, what is the diameter of Mercury?

a. about 240 km
b. about 2400 km
c. about 24,000 km
d. about 240,000 km
e. about 2.4106 km
ANS: B PTS: 1

15. In the diagram below, what is the diameter of Jupiter?

a. about 7.0104 km
b. about 7.0105 km
c. about 1.4104 km
d. about 1.4105 km
e. about 3.5106 km
 ANS: D PTS: 1

16. Earth has a radius of about 6400 km, the sun has a radius of about 7.0105 km, and a rubber ball has a
radius of 6.4 cm. If you were to construct a scale model of the solar system using the rubber ball to
represent Earth, what is the radius of a ball needed to represent the sun in your model?
a. 7.0105 cm
b. 7.0 cm
c. 700 cm
d. 70 cm
e. 7000 cm
ANS: C PTS: 1

17. The speed of light is 3.0105 km/s, and it takes 1.3 s for light to travel from the moon to Earth. From
this information, what is the distance to the moon?
a. 390,000 km
b. 230,000 km
c. 3.9 km
d. 2.3 km
e. 4.3105 km
ANS: A PTS: 1

18. If the distance to the nearest star is 4.2 light-years, then

a. the star is 4.2 million AU away.
b. the light we see left the star 4.2 years ago.
c. the star must have formed 4.2 billion years ago.
d. the star must be very young.
e. the star must be very old.
ANS: B PTS: 1

19. The Milky Way Galaxy is

a. a spiral galaxy.
b. part of a cluster of galaxies that contains a few dozen galaxies.
c. about 80,000 light years in diameter.
d. all of the above.
ANS: D PTS: 1

20. If the Earth were represented as a basketball (~10 in. in diameter) and the moon as a baseball (~3 in. in
diameter) then, to order of magnitude, what size would best represent the diameter of the sun?
a. 10 ft
b. 100 ft
c. 1000 ft
d. 10000 ft
ANS: B PTS: 1

21. Which sequence is correct when ordered by increasing size?

a. Earth, Solar System, Milky Way Galaxy, clusters of galaxies
b. Solar System, Earth, galaxy clusters, Milky Way Galaxy
c. Earth, Milky Way Galaxy, Solar System, galaxy clusters
d. Galaxy clusters, Solar System, Milky Way Galaxy, Earth
 ANS: A PTS: 1

22. How is a planet different than a star?

a. Planets are larger than stars.
b. Planets reflect light while stars produce their own light.
c. Stars move faster in the sky than planets.
d. Planets are brighter than stars.
ANS: B PTS: 1

23. If the distance from the sun to the Earth is represented by roughly 15 meters, then the distance from
Earth to the moon on the same scale would be
a. about 30 meters.
b. about 10 meters.
c. about 1 meter.
d. small than your hand.
ANS: D PTS: 1

24. Assume the size of the sun is represented by a baseball with the Earth is about 15 meters (150 million
km or 8 light minutes) away. How far away, to scale, would the nearest stars to the sun be? Pick the
closest answer.
a. about the distance between New York and Boston (330 km)
b. 100 meters away
c. about the distance across the United States from New York to Los Angeles (4300 km)
d. about the distance across 50 football fields (50  100 m)
ANS: C PTS: 1

25. The average distance from Earth to the sun is

a. 1 ly.
b. 1 million km.
c. 1 million miles.
d. 1 billion km.
e. 150 million km.
ANS: E PTS: 1

26. Assume a 100-yard football field represents the 14-billion-year history of the universe with one end as
the origin and the other end representing the present. The existence of human beings will extend
from ____ to the present “goal line.”
a. the 50-yard line
b. the 5-yard line
c. the one-yard line
d. the one-inch line
ANS: D PTS: 1

27. Which of these is NOT a common misconception?

a. A light year is a unit of time.
b. Stars look like disks when seen through a telescope
c. A galaxy is a star plus its planets.
d. All of the above are misconceptions.
ANS: D PTS: 1
28. 64,200,000,000 is equal to
a. 6.42107.
b. 6.4210−7.
c. 6.421010.
d. 6.4210−10.
e. 1.01064.2.
ANS: C PTS: 1

29. A solar system contains

a. primarily planets.
b. large amounts of gas and dust but very few stars.
c. large amounts of gas, dust, and stars.
d. a single star and planets.
e. thousands of superclusters.
ANS: D PTS: 1

30. 3.0105 times 1.5109 is equal to

a. 4.51045.
b. 4.51014.
c. 2.0104.
d. 2.01014.
e. 2.01045.
ANS: B PTS: 1

31. 4.4106 divided by 8.81010 is equal to

a. 5.010−5.
b. 5.010−4.
c. 5.0104.
d. 3.91017.
e. 3.91016.
ANS: A PTS: 1

32. If the light takes 8 minutes to reach Earth from the sun and the nearest star is 4.7 ly from the sun, what
is the distance from the sun to the nearest star in astronomical units?
a. 37.6 AU
b. 1.7 AU
c. 214 AU
d. 310,000 AU
e. 1.51011 AU
ANS: D PTS: 1

33. Which of the following is the largest?

a. the diameter of Earth
b. the diameter of the moon
c. the diameter of the sun
d. the diameter of Jupiter
e. the distance from Earth to the sun
ANS: E PTS: 1
COMPLETION

1. The name of the average distance from Earth to the sun is one ____________________.

ANS: astronomical unit

PTS: 1

2. Light takes about 8 minutes to travel from the sun to Earth and about 40 minutes to travel from the sun
to Jupiter. Jupiter is about ____________________ AU from the sun

ANS:
five
5

PTS: 1

3. A(n) ____________________ is the largest known structure in the universe.

ANS: filament

PTS: 1

4. A(n) ____________________ is the distance that light would travel in one year.

ANS: light-year

PTS: 1

5. The number 52,600,000,000 would be written in scientific notation as ____________________.

ANS: 5.261010

PTS: 1

6. The ____________________ contains a large amount of gas and dust and about 100 billion stars, and
our sun is one of those stars.

ANS: Milky Way Galaxy

PTS: 1

7. A(n) ____________________ is a collection of billions of stars.

ANS: galaxy

PTS: 1

TRUE/FALSE

1. The average distance from Earth to the sun is 1 AU.

 ANS: T PTS: 1

2. The nearest star is 1 ly from the solar system.

ANS: F PTS: 1

3. A light-year is the distance light travels in one year.

ANS: T PTS: 1

4. A kilometer contains 1 million meters.

ANS: F PTS: 1

5. The sun is a star in the Milky Way Galaxy.

ANS: T PTS: 1

6. The metric system is a decimal system.

ANS: T PTS: 1

7. 3.42107 km is the same as 3.42104 m.

ANS: F PTS: 1

8. The numbers 9.81105 and 981,000 are equivalent.

ANS: T PTS: 1

9. An astronomical unit is larger than a light-year.

ANS: F PTS: 1

10. A supercluster refers to a large group of stars within the Milky Way.

ANS: F PTS: 1

ESSAY

1. Explain the difference between a light-year and the orbital period of Earth.

ANS:
Answer not provided.

PTS: 1

2. Why would the English system of units be more useful if a foot contained 10 inches?

ANS:
Answer not provided.
 PTS: 1

3. Why do we measure some distances in astronomy in light-years and some in astronomical units?

ANS:
Answer not provided.

PTS: 1

4. From what you know about astronomical units and light-years, how would you define a light-minute?

ANS:
Answer not provided.

PTS: 1

5. "I live 20 minutes from Center City." How is this statement similar to giving astronomical distances in
light-years?

ANS:
Answer not provided.

PTS: 1

6. Describe the difference between a solar system and a galaxy.

ANS:
Answer not provided.

PTS: 1

7. Considering that the sun is about 1/100 AU in diameter and a typical planet like Earth is 1/10,000 AU,
discuss whether or not our Solar System is crowded or empty.

ANS:
Answer not provided.

PTS: 1

8. Briefly describe the scientific method.

ANS:
No answer provided.

PTS: 1

9. Draw a schematic (not to scale) diagram showing the sun, the Earth circling around it, and the other
seven planets with labels for each orbit.

ANS:
Answer not provided.

PTS: 1
10. Draw a schematic (not to scale) diagram showing our solar system, nearby stars, and other stars
making up our Milky Way Galaxy as dots. You do not have to draw 100 billion dots as stars!

ANS:
Answer not provided.

PTS: 1

11. Assume a textbook shows a diagram of the solar system on, say, a standard notebook-sized sheet.
The orbits of eight planets are sketched around the sun at the center. Disks on each orbit are large
enough to show features like continents on Earth or the rings of Saturn. There is a similar-sized disk
for the sun with some sunspots. Discuss what is wrong or right with this diagram.

ANS:
Answer not provided.

PTS: 1