Other Astronomical Bodies Trivia

1. M1 is 6500 light years away in the constellation Taurus. It is also known as?

From Quiz M's of the Messier Marathon

Answer: the Crab Nebula

The Crab Nebula is the first object in the Messier Marathon. When Messier first observed M1, it was considerably much brighter. Now a 12" catadioptric is needed to view it.

From Quiz Messier Marathon Madness

Answer: 110

Charles Messier's catalog contains 110 objects. How many you find in the Marathon is the real challenge.

From Quiz M1: The Crab Nebula

Answer: Taurus the Bull

The constellation Taurus is a winter constellation, which means that it is not visible in the summer. Within the stellar bull, M1 lies northwest of the star Zeta (æ) Tauri.

From Quiz The New Earth - Gliese 581c

Answer: Gliese 581

The planets orbiting Gliese 581 are Gliese 581b, Gliese 581c, and Gliese 581d. There is no Gliese 581a so there is no confusion with the star itself.

From Quiz Extra Solar Worlds

Answer: Coma Berenices

The star HD 114762 has the first confirmed planet. Coma Berenices is a rather small constellation in the northern hemisphere. The planet was discovered in 1989. Having 11 times the mass of Jupiter, it is just under the brown dwarf limit (which is around 13 Jupiter masses). The planet, HD 114762 b, orbits in about 84 days.

From Quiz Exoplanets

Answer: A pulsar

The stylishly named pulsar PSR 1257+12 is believed to be a supernova remnant, meaning that the four planets discovered either survived a huge stellar cataclysm or were formed from supernova debris.

From Quiz Twenty Questions About Asteroids

Answer: Giuseppe Piazzi

1 Ceres was not only the first asteroid discovered, it is also the largest known asteroid being some 933 kilometers long. It is sometimes referred to as a dwarf planet. The planet Uranus was only discovered 20 years earlier. Giuseppe Piazzi was born at in Valtellina, on July 16, 1746. He died at Naples, on July 22, 1826.

From Quiz Galaxy Names

Answer: Andromeda

A no brainer! This galaxy is larger than the Milky Way (our Galaxy) and can be seen with the unaided eye at a dark sky site.

From Quiz Deep Sky Objects Three

Answer: Scutum

This is a very rich open star cluster, easily visible in binoculars but stunning in a scope. It is also known as M11 and NGC 6705.

From Quiz Deep Sky Objects Two

Answer: Cygnus

This one does resemble the North American continent. It is best seen in a dark sky site with large binoculars. It is also known as NGC 7000.

From Quiz Deep Sky Objects One

Answer: Taurus

The Crab Nebula, also known as M1 and NGC 1952. This is the remains of a supernova explosion that was witnessed by the Chinese on July 4, 1054.

From Quiz Whirlpool, It's Not Just an Appliance!

Answer: Spiral

There are three main components to a Spiral Galaxy: the bulge, which is a spherical formation found in the center of the galaxy. The halo is located encircling the bulge. Then there's the disk which encompasses some of the halo, around the edges. The bulge has older stars while the halo is filled with globular clusters. The disk has younger stars and is also made up of dust and gas. Lenticular galaxies are a rarer subtype; they are in the middle between elliptical and spiral in shape.

From Quiz M's of the Messier Marathon

Answer: globular cluster

M13 is probably the most interesting globular cluster seen in the northern hemisphere.

From Quiz M1: The Crab Nebula

Answer: China

The supernova explosion (which occurs only once per century per galaxy) was bright enough to be seen in the daytime. 1731 was the year the nebula itself was first observed, by English astronomer John Bevis.

From Quiz A Trip to a Black Hole

Answer: event horizon

The event horizon is in the shape of a sphere, and, to an observer, would appear black. The event horizon is not a physically solid feature of the black hole, but it does hide all that goes on inside because light cannot escape from within.

From Quiz Extra Solar Worlds

Answer: Epsilon Eridani

It takes this planet almost seven of our years to make one revolution around its parent star. The planet is about 1.5 times the mass of Jupiter. Epsilon Eridani is the 10th closest star system to Earth. Proxima Centauri is the nearest star to our Sun, 16 Cygni is about 55 light years away and 51 Pegasi is about 50 light years away.

From Quiz Mad About Meteors

Answer: Tears of Saint Lawrence

This spectacular shower is named after a martyr in early Rome. He was burned on an open stove in 258 AD. Another famous meteor shower, the Leonids, inspired this section of "The Rime of the Ancient Mariner", by Samuel Taylor Coleridge: The upper air burst into life! And a hundred fire-flags sheen, To and fro they were hurried about! And to and fro, and in and out, The wan stars danced between And the coming wind did roar more loud, And the sails did sigh like sedge; And the rain poured down from one black cloud; The Moon was at its edge

From Quiz Exoplanets

Answer: Hot Jupiter

Hot Jupiters, or 'roasters' are so close to their parent stars that they are literally boiling. 51 Pegasi b is similar in size to Jupiter, with a star-skimming planetary temperature estimated at 1000 degrees Celsius.

From Quiz Galaxy Names

Answer: Coma Berenices

The spiral galaxy is also known as M64.

From Quiz Deep Sky Objects Three

Answer: Cassiopeia

The Bubble Nebula is also known as NGC 7635.

From Quiz Deep Sky Objects Two

Answer: Ursa Major

This is faint, but one of the largest planetary nebulae known. It is also known as M97 and NGC 3587.

From Quiz Deep Sky Objects One

Answer: Sagittarius

This bright diffuse nebula is also known as the Omega Nebula, the Horseshoe Nebula as well as M17 and NGC 6618.

From Quiz Whirlpool, It's Not Just an Appliance!

Answer: A black hole

This conjecture has been made by NASA in 1992 based on an image taken of the Whirlpool Galaxy that the center is a black hole. The image has been famous as "X marks the spot". The "x" is a silhouette that appears across the galaxy's nucleus and results from the redistribution of gas, dust and stars caused by the black hole's gravity.

From Quiz Space Tour: An Exoplanetary Expedition

Answer: 1%

Scientists have proposed that gaseous sodium and titanium oxide are responsible for the darkness of this planet, but there is no way to know for sure at this point. Some other explanation is possible. The planet is believed to be a gas giant similar to Jupiter, but hotter.

From Quiz M's of the Messier Marathon

Answer: M42

M42, Orion's Nebula can easily be seen with the unaided eye.

From Quiz Messier Marathon Madness

Answer: late March to early April

The earliest or latest window for this event is late March till early April. All 110 Messier objects should appear in the night sky between dusk till dawn.

From Quiz The New Earth - Gliese 581c

Answer: Red dwarf

Red dwarfs are much cooler and smaller than other stars. They also burn their hydrogen at a slow rate, meaning they can last for billions, and even trillions of years!

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Last Updated Oct 18 2025 5:46 AM

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