Life in a Vacuum Trivia Quiz

Answer: Background Radiation

It is believed that background radiation are the remnants of microwaves left over from the so called "Big Bang" which created the universe. Our planet is showered constantly with it. It is found all around us, in the air, outer space, rocks, water, everywhere. Certain areas of our planet seem to have really been dealt a hefty dose of it, as they have been found to record levels more than an astonishing 500 times the average.

This is most noticeable in large constructions in the USA, Iran and Scandinavian countries.

The best protection against unhealthy doses of this kind of background radiation in smaller buildings is a well built basement. In the higher atmosphere, background radiation is particularly intense and, as a result, astronauts can suffer from its effects. So next time you think anyone has a lovely healthy glow, just run a Geiger counter over him or her to make sure.

Answer: Binary Star

A binary star is one of two stars whose orbit circles a central mass of some kind. They usually consist of a larger one and a smaller one. These are known as the primary and secondary star respectively. Their importance in the world of space is they allow astronomers to accurately calculate the area of the object around which they orbit. They are also known as double stars.

Answer: Color Index

The color index is a term used by astronomers when they employ calculations, based on any star's color, to determine the temperature of that star. There is a particular formula that is used to work this out. This goes as follows:
EB-V=(B-V)Observed-(B-V)Intrinsic. Are you any the wiser? I'm most definitely not.

Answer: Partial Eclipse

An eclipse takes place when one spatial object is fully or partially obscured by passing behind another object - or when a secondary object passes between the main object and its normal line of vision to another object. Examples of eclipses: From our perspective, a solar eclipse takes place when the moon's shadow partially or fully blocks our normal view of the sun.

A lunar eclipse takes place when the Earth moves between the moon and the sun. Until scientists were able to explain eclipses in mathematical and emotionally detached terms, eclipses were looked upon by a superstitious ancient world as harbingers of doom.

Answer: Shooting Star

A tongue in cheek description of a shooting star would be the actor John Wayne, but for the purposes of this quiz, the term is a non-scientific way of describing the fiery trail left behind a meteoroid as it enters Earth's atmosphere. A meteorite is a smaller piece broken off from a larger asteroid. If it manages to enter our atmosophere and streak through our skies, in the lovely display that romantics and dreamers refer to as a shooting star, that blazing trailblazer is then classed as a meteor. If it hits the surface of the planet anywhere without first burning up beautifully in the sky, it is then classed as a meteorite. So, although you're really wishing upon a chunk of burning rock when you wish upon a falling star, keep right on believing in those wishes and dreams, because in a sometimes sad and lonely world for many people, these allow hope to retain a place in the heart.

Answer: Terminator

No it isn't a question on Arnold Schwarzenegger. The terminator is referred to as the twilight zone in the world of astrometrics. When looking at our planet from above, for example, it is the greyish coloured dividing line that separates that part of the planet into day and night.

It occurs twice a day on the planet at sunrise and sunset. The location of the terminator line varies with the changing seasons. At our equator, when looking down from space, our terminator line moves at an astonishing 1,000 miles, or 1,600 kilometres an hour.

Answer: Inferior Planets

Mercury and Venus, the two planets definitely classed as inferior plants, lie closer to the sun than Earth does. The superior planets, on the other hand, those of Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus and Neptune, are further away from the sun than our planet. Earth was the dividing line which marked the difference in these classifications.

However, in recent years, astronomers tend to include Earth as an inferior planet as well - and Mars has become the planet that marks the median line by which the classifications are made.

The term for inferior and superior planets is not the same as the term for inner and outer planets. These are a different classification again, and refer to a planet's location in relation to the asteroid belt.

Answer: Kirkwood Gaps

The Kirkwood Gaps, just to be illogical, are a section in the main asteroid belt between Mars and Jupiter, where hardly any asteroids can be found at all. This is a result of the gravitational force of the mighty planet Jupiter. It changes the normal orbit of any object occurring within its range of influence.

Answer: Minor Planet

A minor planet is any large object circling the sun that does not fall into the category of either a normal type planet or a comet. A large asteroid, for example, in orbit around the sun, is classed as a minor planet.

Answer: Multiple Stars

A multiple star is part of a group of stars that circle around each other in a predictable orbit. They are bound to each other in a type of polygamous universal marriage. Most of them come in groups of three. Anything more than four in a grouping would be extremely rare.