Exploring the Cosmos - Degree Exam 2012 - Life and Death of Stars (Part 1)
1. If an object is measured to have a parallax of 1'', how far away is it?
1 parsec
1000 parsecs
100 parsecs
10 parsecs
2. How much faster does the Sun spin on its axis, at its equator, than the Earth does?
25 times
36 times
10 times
50 times
3. Which of the following lists the elements Carbon, Helium, Hydrogen and Oxygen in descending order of abundance in our universe?
Carbon, Helium, Hydrogen, Oxygen
Hydrogen, Helium, Carbon, Oxygen
Hydrogen, Oxygen, Carbon, Helium
Oxygen, Hydrogen, Carbon, Helium
4. The luminosity of a star is dependent on which of the following combinations of stellar radius (r) and surface temperature (T)?
rT
r^2 * T^2
rT^2
r^2 * T^4
5. The two-step process of the photodisintegration of elements, and the direct capture of helium nuclei, is known as what?
The alpha process.
The Helium capture process.
The neutron capture process.
The triple-alpha process.
6. Blackbody curves are drawn from two stars, A and B. If the peak emission frequency of star A is higher than that of star B, what can we infer about the relative temperatures of the stars?
It is not possible to infer anything about the two stars temperature without knowing the mass of the star.
The two stars are at the same temperature.
Star B is colder than star A.
Star A is colder than star B.
7. Which spectral class of stars shows strong levels of ionised helium in their spectra?
O
M
F
A
8. Which of the following lists the spectral classes of stars in order of increasing temperature?
MABFGOK
ABFGKMO
MKGFABO
OBAFGKM
9. Which of the following statements about the apparent brightness of a star is correct?
Increasing the luminosity increases the apparent brightness.
Increasing the distance between star and observer increases the apparent brightness.
Changes in luminosity and distance do not affect the apparent brightness.
Decreasing the luminosity increases the apparent brightness.
10. To which stellar luminosity class do Giant stars belong?
III
II
IV
V
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