Practice Test

Please solve the following questions. This is not a real exam, it will not be graded, and you do not need to submit your solutions to anyone. The questions are simply intended to help you practice for the real exam.

These questions will not appear in the exam itself. Students who don't genuinely attempt to solve the questions on their own, and only memorize the solutions, will have a very hard time in the actual exam!

This sample exam is online, but the real exam will be given in person, at a time and place indicated on the course website.

THIS IS NOT THE ACTUAL EXAM!
THIS IS JUST A PRACTICE EXAM!
THE REAL EXAM IS IN PERSON!

If you need any clarifications for these questions, you can ask for them on the course Teams channel.

Question 1

I observed an object, larger than Earth but smaller than the Sun, which does not generate light by either deuterium or hydrogen fusion. What is it?

A brown dwarf.
A planet.
A star.

Question 2

I found a hydrogen-9 isotope. How many neutrons does it have?

6
8
7

Question 3

A star is located on the top left of the H-R diagram. This star has...

High luminosity and low temperature.
High luminosity and high temperature.
Low luminosity and low temperature.

Question 4

In the proton-proton chain, how many total hydrogen nuclei do we start with? (Remember that steps 1 and 2 happen twice in a full chain!)

2.
1.
4.

Question 5

If a particle has charge +1, what would be the charge of its antiparticle?

+1.
0.
-1.

Question 6

What kind of mass is defined as resistance of an object to acceleration?

Neither of the other options is correct.
Inertial mass.
Gravitational mass.

Question 7

If the spectral lines of a star shift toward red, this means...

The star is not moving with respect to us.
The star is moving toward us.
The star is moving away from us.

Question 8

Which of the following stars is the least bright in the sky?

A star with apparent magnitude +3.1.
A star with apparent magnitude +7.0.
A star with apparent magnitude -4.4.

Question 9

In the H-R diagram, red dwarfs can be found...

On the main sequence.
At higher luminosity and lower temperature than the main sequence.
At higher luminosity and higher temperature than the main sequence.

Question 10

What happens in electron-positron annihilation?

An electron and a positron annihilate each other and produce 1 photon.
An electron and a positron annihilate each other and produce 2 photons.
An electron and a positron annihilate each other and no photons are produced.

Question 11

Star A has brighter apparent magnitude than star B. What does that say about the luminosity of the two stars?

There's no way to know unless we also know the distance to each star.
Star A is more luminous.
Star B is more luminous.

Question 12

In an atom, the electrons are located...

Inside the nucleus.
Either inside or outside the nucleus, depending on the type of atom.
Outside the nucleus.

Question 13

A proton is made of...

2 up quarks and 1 down quark.
1 up quark and 1 down quark.
1 up quark and 2 down quarks.

Question 14

What is nuclear fusion?

The process where heavy nuclei split into lighter nuclei.
The process where nuclei are destroyed and converted into pure energy.
The process where light nuclei combine into heavier nuclei.

Question 15

Compared to RR Lyrae variables, Cepheid variables typically have...

Lower luminosity and shorter period.
Higher luminosity and shorter period.
Higher luminosity and longer period.

Question 16

I see a very faint star. This could mean:

Either the distance to the star is large or the luminosity of the star is large.
Either the distance to the star is small or the luminosity of the star is large.
Either the distance to the star is large or the luminosity of the star is small.

Question 17

Which of the following is a main-sequence star?

B5 II
K6 V
G2 IV

Question 18

A star was measured to have a parallax of 0.25 arc seconds. How far away is the star?

4 parsecs.
6 parsecs.
5 parsecs.

Question 19

Which of the following is a blue giant?

O4 III
M5 V
M2 III

Question 20

Photon A has wavelength 2 cm. Photon B has wavelength 1 cm. Which photon has a higher frequency?

Photon A.
Photon B.
Both have the same frequency.

Question 21

I want to measure the distance to a star that is estimated to be a few million light-years away. Which method should I use?

Stellar parallax
Cepheid variables
RR Lyrae variables

Question 22

A photon has a wavelength of 700 nm. What color is it?

Red.
Green.
Blue.

Question 23

Which of the following stars is the coolest?

K3
K9
K5

Question 24

Which of the following is the shortest?

1 trillion kilometers.
1 parsec.
1 light-year.

Question 25

Object A has mass 1 kg. Object B has mass 9 kg. According to E=mc², how much rest energy does object B have compared to A?

9 times more energy.
3 times less energy.
3 times more energy.