Answer Options:
at the very outer edge of the galactic disk.
in the halo of the galaxy, about 30,000 light-years above the galactic disk.
in the galactic disk, on the inside edge of the Orion Spur.
in the galactic disk, near the galaxy’s bulge.
Answer: in the galactic disk, on the inside edge of the Orion Spur.
Question: What core temperature is required for helium fusion to occur?
Answer Options:
100 million K
1 million K
15 million K
100 billion K
Answer: 100 million K
Question: The maximum mass for a neutron star is…
Answer Options:
not known exactly but is somewhere about 3 solar-masses.
somewhere about 5 solar-masses.
unlimited. There is no maximum limit.
1.4 solar masses.
Answer: not known exactly but is somewhere about 3 solar-masses.
Question: A type Ib supernova requires…
Answer Options:
…that two neutron stars both be white dwarf stars.
…a binary system with a neutron star.
…a binary system with a white dwarf star.
…a massive star able to build up an iron core.
Answer: …a binary system with a white dwarf star.
Question: The first step in the proton-proton chain produces an antielectron, or positron. What happens to the positron?
Answer Options:
It bodily works its way to the Sun’s surface, where it escapes into space.
It rapidly escapes from the Sun, traveling into space at nearly the speed of light.
It is rapidly converted to energy when it reacts on any ordinary electron, resulting in matter-antimatter annihilation.
It quickly reverts to an ordinary electron, forming an electron-positron pair that remains stable.
It fuses with a nearby neutron to form a proton.
Answer: 3. It is rapidly converted to energy when it reacts on any ordinary electron, resulting in matter-antimatter annihilation.
Question: Which of the following stages is best explained as the outer layers of a star blown into space and illuminated by a hot central star?
Answer Options:
red supergiant
helium flash
planetary nebula
red giant
Answer: planetary nebula
Question: Which of the following main sequence stars is most likely to undergo a helium flash later in its evolution?
Answer Options:
O1
G9
K6
B3
Answer: G9
Question: What is a CME?
Answer Options:
Central Mass Ejection of charged particles from the Sun that move and refresh Earth’s magnetosphere. Without it, Earth would not have life.
The period of time required for charged particles to travel from the Sun to the Earth, approximately two days.
A catastrophic temporary burst of charged particles from the Sun that can disrupt satellite communications.
Answer: A catastrophic temporary burst of charged particles from the Sun that can disrupt satellite communications.
Question: What is the sunspot cycle?
Answer Options:
A fictional motorcycle used to describe how large sunspots are by imagining how large it would take to drive around them.
The 34 to 34 year period when sunspots appear darkest.
The mere spin to the differential rotation of the Sun that brings sunspots to the photosphere.
The average 11 year cycle in which the number of sunspots increases and decreases.
Answer: The average 11 year cycle in which the number of sunspots increases and decreases.
Question: When did the Milky Way Galaxy begin its formation?
Answer Options:
about 13.8 billion years ago
about 10 million years ago
about 100,000 years ago
about 4.5 billion years ago
Answer: about 13.8 billion years ago
Question: True or False? Most of the ISM is composed of ionized hydrogen (HII).
Answer Options:
True
False
Answer: True