The Space Panorama

15 Points Per Correct Answer - No time limit  

1. Mu Cephei is a brilliant star in the night and is contained in the Cepheus constellation. It was given a nickname by Sir William Herschel, what was the nickname? Diamond Portrait Crimson Entity Garnet Star Red Star

2. Eventually, our galaxy will crash into the Andromeda Galaxy (M31), but we will not have to worry about that happening to us in our lifetime, or many, many, many generations after. Andromeda has a long way to go. But, what will happen when we collide? (Exclude the variables like black holes). The galaxies will pass through each other, most likely no planets even touching, but the gravity of the passing bodies will throw us and others out of orbit. Planets will collide and create a mass site of destruction. Nothing whatsoever. The Andromeda Galaxy is not on a collision course towards the Milky Way.

3. We know about the life cycle of a star, but here is a question on the very end of a poor star's life: white dwarfs are both incredibly hot and very bright. True False

4. Due to odd star movements in the center of all galaxies, astronomers have come up with a solution to provide for the odd "whip-like" movements in star orbits. What is the theory? This happens to be the normal orbit at the center of a galaxy. The gravity of all the stars at the dense center of a galaxy throws the star's orbit off. There is a black hole at the very center of all galaxies A neutron star sits at the center of a galaxy.

5. If you have lived on Earth, then you have seen the sun. But, is the sun the undefeated champ? There is something that we know of on Earth that is hotter that the surface of the sun. True False

6. Most of the time when given the term "dying star," we think of a great bang and then a massive vacuum. Not all stars end this way, what is the alternate death course a star can take? Become a white, then black dwarf All stars eventually create a supernova, then either a black hole or neutron star Become a quasar Immediate burn out, star thus giving off no more light

7. Jupiter: big, huge, large, violent. The Great Red Spot is a raging hurricane that has been...raging...for 300 years! But what chemical (or compound) most likely makes it red? Liquid Hydrogen Iron Oxide (Rust) Bronze Traces Phosphorus

8. Moons are small objects that orbit planets. As you may know, Ganymede is the largest moon, but for now, we are throwing it out of the spotlight and looking at the other extreme. What is the smallest moon in the solar system? Deimos Phobos Moon Triton

9. Edmond Halley is widely known for his discovery about Halley's Comet. His declared that all the comet sightings were one and the same even though there were large time periods between each sighting. He was correct, and got the comet named after him. But, what ironic thing happened when he proposed his ideas? He died before his ideas were proven correct After he revealed his findings, a family member died. He was rejected, but during the time they realized he was right, he had been on vacation. Halley lost all his records when called up to speak about his ideas.

10. And now as we return home to Earth, we will take one last look at the sun. If there was no sun, no life would have been possible. So, one last question on our important star, what city was completely depleted of electricity by a solar flare in 1989? Paris Quebec Houston Oslo