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AST3043 Test 2 UF
UF History of Astronomy Test 2
91
Astronomy
Undergraduate 3
03/19/2012

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Term
The Babylonians' number system was sexagesimal,
that is, it used a base of
Definition
60, like the number of arcminutes in a
degree
Term
Ecliptic longitude is measured
Definition
east from the vernal equinox along the ecliptic
Term
The use of the zigzag approximation in
representing the variable motion in longitude
was embodied in the
Definition
Jupiter tablet of occurrences of
second station
Term
Kidinnu (later known as Cidenas) was the
inventor of the
Definition
zigzag approximation for variable motion in longitude
Term
The Moon's phase at a solar eclipse is
Definition
new
Term
The eclipse seasons recur at intervals of
Definition
slightly less than half a year
Term
Which of the following statements is true
of the Babylonians at their most advanced?
Definition
they were able to predict lunar
eclipses, including whether they would be
total or partial and the degree
Term
The first of the Greeks to consider the
Universe as an object for speculation
regarding its nature was (as far as we know)
Definition
Thales
Term
The object at the center of Philolaus's
model of the Universe was the
Definition
central fire
Term
The hippopede or figure-eight was
introduced by Eudoxus to represent the
Definition
retrograde motion
Term
According to Aristotle's philosophy, the natural
motion of everything in the sublunary (that is,
terrestrial) part of the Universe is
Definition
vertical, either up for light elements
(air,fire) or down for heavy elements (earth,
water)
Term
The argument of fall was one of
Aristotle's arguments
Definition
against the Earth's rotation
Term
Comets and meteors are phenomena in the upper level
of Earth's atmosphere according to Aristotle
because
Definition
they change, whereas everything in the
superlunary region is immutable
Term
The first person to come up with a value
(though erroneous) for the ratio of the Sun's
distance from Earth to the Moon's was
Definition
Aristarchus
Term
Which of the following did Heraclides
not advocate?
Definition
the Earth and the planets orbit
the Sun
Term
The Earth's circumference was first
determined, rather accurately, by
Definition
Eratosthenes
Term
Precession, with all its effects on star
positions, was first discovered by
Definition
Hipparchus
Term
Hipparchus's model for the Sun, which
was adopted by Ptolemy later, used
Definition
an eccentric circle
Term
In the simplified Earth-centered epicyclic
system we discussed in class, the deferent for
a superior planet is identical in size to
Definition
that planet's orbit around the Sun
Term
In the Greek way of reckoning, an inferior
planet's period of revolution around its
epicycle is
Definition
its synodic period
Term
The work that contained Ptolemy's ideas about
the way the planets are actually arranged in space
(as opposed to detailed mathematical models for
each separately) was his
Definition
Planetary Hypotheses
Term
Ptolemy introduced the equant in order to
better represent the variable motion in longitude.
It became the most controversial feature of his system
because
Definition
it violated the principle of uniform circular
motion
Term
The term that applies to the direction towards Mecca
for prayer in Islam is
Definition
quibla
Term
The term trepidation refers to a nonexistent
Definition
oscillation of the equinox around its average
position in addition to precession
Term
The advance of the solar apogee was first incorporated
in a zij by
Definition
al-Battani (Albategnius)
Term
The zij which was distinguished by its inclusion of
observational data on eclipses and conjunctions was the
Definition
Hakemite Tables
Term
The observatory that was founded by Nasir al-Din al-Tusi
was the
Definition
Maragha Observatory
Term
The only star catalogue which used newly-measured star
positions instead of rehashing Ptolemy's was produced at .. under the leadership of
Definition
Samarkand Observatory...Ulugh Beg
Term
The author of the Tractatus de Sphaera or
Treatise on the Sphere, an early university textbook
on astronomy, was
Definition
Sacrobosco, also known as John of Holywood
Term
The standard planetary tables in use in Europe for
several centuries until after the time of Copernicus
were the
Definition
Alfonsine Tables
Term
The first extensive (that is, over several decades)
European series of astronomical observations of high quality
for the time was made by
Definition
Bernhard Walther
Term
The instrument that could be used for directly measuring
the ecliptic coordinates of a star or planet was the
Definition
zodiacal armillary
Term
The instrument that could be used either to measure the
angular separation between two objects on the sky or the
altitude of an object was the
Definition
cross-staff
Term
The approximate date of Ptolemy is
Definition
150 AD
Term
he approximate date of the translation of the
Almagest into Arabic is
Definition
830 AD
Term
Bernhard Walther, who made the first extensive (that
is, over several decades) European series of high-quality
astronomical observations (for the time), was a pupil of
Definition
Regiomontanus, also known as Johannes Mueller
Term
The instrument that could be used for directly measuring
the equatorial coordinates of a star or planet was the
Definition
equatorial armillary
Term
The instrument that was used to measure precisely the
altitude of a star or planet when it crosses the celestial
meridian was the
Definition
mural quadrant
Term
The approximate date of Hipparchus is
Definition
150 BC
Term
The approximate date of Aristotle is
Definition
350 BC
Term
The observatory that was founded by Taqi al-Din was
the short-lived
Definition
Istanbul Observatory
Term
The Hakemite Tables, which were distinguished by
the inclusion of observational data on eclipses and
conjunctions, were the work of
Definition
Abd al-Rahman Ibn Yunus
Term
Trepidation, a supposed oscillation of the
equinoxes around their average positions in addition to
the steady westwards motion of precession, was
introduced by
Definition
Thabit ibn Qrra (Tobit
Term
The term that applies to the thin crescent Moon
that marks the beginning of the month in the Islamic
calendar is
Definition
hilal
Term
Ptolemy introduced the equant in order to
better represent the variable motion in longitude.
It became the most controversial feature of his system
because
Definition
it violated the principle of uniform circular
motion
Term
The work that contained Ptolemy's detailed
mathematical models for the planets (including
the Sun and Moon) was the
Definition
Matematike syntaxis or
Mathematical Compilation, later known as the
Almagest
Term
In the simplified Earth-centered epicyclic
system we discussed in class, the epicycle for
an inferior planet is identical in size to
Definition
that planet's orbit around the sun
Term
Hipparchus's model for the Sun, which
was adopted by Ptolemy later, used
Definition
an eccentric circle
Term
Precession, with all its effects on star
positions, was first discovered by Hipparchus
Definition
by comparing his star catalogue
with an earlier one
Term
The Earth's circumference was first
determined, rather accurately, by
Definition
Eratosthenes
Term
The idea that Mercury and Venus orbit the Sun
while everything else, including the Sun, orbits
the Earth was advocated by
Definition
Heraclides
Term
The first person to come up with values
based on observation for the ratio of the Sun's
and Moon's sizes to the Earth's was
Definition
Aristarchus
Term
The argument of parallax was an argument of
Aristotle's
Definition
against the Earth's revolution around the
Sun
Term
According to Aristotle's philosophy, the natural
motion of everything in the superlunary (that is,
celestial) part of the Universe is
Definition
circular at constant speed, that is,
uniform circular motion
Term
The hippopede was inadequate to represent
the apparent motion of which of the following planets?
Definition
Mars
Term
The concept of "music of the spheres" was
associated with the school of
Definition
Pythgoras
Term
Which of the following was used by the
Babylonians to approximate the variable motion
in longitude, for example of the Sun?
Definition
the zigzag approximation
Term
Ecliptic latitude is measured
Definition
north or south of the ecliptic
Term
Which of the following does not go back
to The Babylonians' sexagesimal number system?
Definition
the number of hours in a day
Term
Which of the following was used by the
Babylonians to approximate the motion in
latitude of the Moon when it is near
the nodes?
Definition
the "broken" zigzag approximation
Term
Lunar eclipses can only occur when the
Moon's phase is
Definition
full
Term
The Babylonians' discovery of the saros
cycle, exemplified in the Saros-Canon,
enabled them to
Definition
forecast when a lunar eclipse
might occur
Term
The Counter-Earth was a feature of the
cosmology associated with the school of
Definition
Pythagoras
Term
The hippopede was introduced by which of
the following to represent retrograde motion?
Definition
Eudoxus
Term
According to Aristotle's philosophy, the natural
motion of everything in the sublunary (that is,
terrestrial) part of the Universe is
Definition
vertical, either up for light elements
(air,fire) or down for heavy elements (earth, water)
Term
Which of the following advocated a
heliocentric model for the Universe?
Definition
Aristarchus
Term
The idea that the daily motion of Sun,
Moon, planets, and fixed stars was caused
by the Earth's rotation was suggested by
Definition
Heraclides
Term
The Earth's circumference was first
determined, rather accurately, by
Definition
Eratosthenes
Term
The first reasonably close value for the
Moon's geocentric parallax (and the first
distance of a celestial body) was obtained by
Definition
Hipparchus
Term
In the modern way of reckoning (with respect
to the fixed stars), a superior planet's period
of revolution around its epicycle is
Definition
the sidereal year
Term
The Ilkhanic Tables were the work of
which observatory?
Definition
Maragha Observatory
Term
Which of the following instruments could not
measure the altitude of a star or planet at any
azimuth but rather was restricted to only two?
Definition
mural quadrant
Term
The approximate date of Aristarchus is
Definition
250 BC
Term
Who was the author of the university textbook
on astronomy entitled (in English) Theory
of the Planets?
Definition
an anonymous author
Term
he Alfonsine Tables, which became the
standard planetary tables in use in Europe for
several centuries until after the time of Copernicus,
were supposedly produced in what is the modern
country of
Definition
Spain
Term
Which of the following statements about
Copernicus's work is not correct?
Definition
His models were much simpler than the
Ptolemaic ones.
Term
Rheticus was the person who
Definition
persuaded Copernicus to write On the
Revolutions
Term
he significance of Tycho's measurements of
the "new star" of 1572 at that time was that
Definition
they showed that Aristotle was wrong
about the superlunary region never changing
Term
Which of the following was not one
of the innovations introduced into
observational astronomy by Tycho?
Definition
the first accurate pendulum clock
Term
Kepler's First Law of Planetary Motion
(the first as we count today) states that
Definition
a planet's orbit is an ellipse
with the Sun at one focus
Term
The size of an elliptical orbit is given
by its
Definition
semimajor axis
Term
hich of the following of Kepler's
works presented for the first time his
first two laws of planetary motion?
Definition
New Astronomy
Term
The first set of planetary tables that was based
on an essentially correct theory of the planets'
orbital motions was the
Definition
Rudolphine Tables
Term
The approximate date of Copernicus is
Definition
1540
Term
One of the earliest zijes, the earliest still extant,
was produced by which of the following scholars at the
House of Wisdom in Baghdad?
Definition
al-Khwarizmi
Term
A moveable ecliptic, a fixed ecliptic, and a point that
connects the two to make the vernal equinox oscillate back
and forth over a period of several thousand years (and
also change the obliquity) were the elements of which of
the following?
Definition
trepidation
Term
The date of Easter is fixed by rule on
Definition
a combination of the solar cycle (tropical year), lunar cycle (synodic month), and
day of the week
Term
Nicole Oresme of the University of Paris pointed out in
the Middle Ages that Aristotle’s argument against the Earth’s rotation could be refuted using the newly-introduced concept of
Definition
impetus
Term
Georg Peurbach’s lectures on the Ptolemaic system of
planetary motions (with some improvements of his own) were turned into the most widely used university text on the subject by Regiomontanus. Its title was
Definition
New Theory of the Planets
Term
Which of the following instruments was used for
measuring the angular separation between objects?
Definition
sextant (old and new)
Term
The instrument that was used either to correct the
altitude of Polaris to get the observer’s latitude or
to tell the time of night was the
Definition
nocturnal
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