Astronomers Trivia Quiz

Answer: The first binary pulsar

Joseph H. Taylor Jr. was a radio astronomer and physicist. He studied at Haverford College and got his PhD in Astronomy at Harvard University in 1968. Russel Alan Hulse, a former student of Mr. Taylor's, studied at Cooper Union College in New York and went on to get his PhD in physics from the University of Massachusetts.

-Stampede_Gal

Answer: That the Earth and the other planets orbit the Sun

Nicolaus Copernicus was born in 1473 and died in 1543. Uncomfortable with Ptolemy's views of the universe, he proposed the heliocentric model of the universe thereby placing the sun in the center of the solar system. Copernicus started work on his radical theories early in the 16th century but the book itself was not published until just prior to his death. Initially there was little opposition by the church to the book, partly because it was not widely distributed. The views promoted by Copernicus would greatly influence Galileo a century later.

-StetsonHat

Answer: Edwin Hubble

Edwin Hubble, a Missouri native, was born in 1889 and he joined the staff at Mount Wilson Observatory in 1919. His main contribution to astronomy is the discovery that some "nebulae" are really galaxies beyond the Milky Way and that the universe as a whole is expanding. The Hubble Space Telescope, launched in 1990, was named in his honor.

-StetsonHat

Answer: William Herschel

Herschel was German-born but spent most of his adult life in Britain. In 1781, he discovered the planet Uranus, although he initially thought it was a comet. Apart from his astronomical work he was a prolific telescope builder as well as the composer of multiple symphonies and other musical works.

-StetsonHat

Answer: Charles Messier

Messier was fascinated by comets having seen one when he was 14. As his studies in astronomy continued, his methodical ways of recording his observations allowed him to create the catalogue. In his observations he found that non-stellar objects, such as nebulae, sometimes look like comets. For this reason, he began to catalogue the objects positions.

-Stampede_Gal

Answer: New General Catalogue

The New General Catalogue, spanning objects of all kinds and numbered NGC 1 through NGC 7840, was first published in 1888. Apart from the NGC catalogue, Dreyer is also noted for his biography of Danish astronomer Tycho Brahe.

-StetsonHat

Answer: Johann Bayer

Johann Bayer produced the first star atlas depicting stars visible to the naked eye. His catalogue included some southern asterisms. Asterisms are a pattern of stars which do not make up a true constellation, and may include stars from different constellations.

-Stampede_Gal

Answer: Maria Mitchell

Maria Mitchell discovered a comet in 1847, which came to be known as "Miss Mitchell's Comet". In 1865, Mitchell became a professor of astronomy and the director of the observatory at Vassar College. She invited her students to watch the meteor showers at night from the observatory. After her death, the Maria Mitchell Association was founded on Nantucket.

-Trufflesss

Answer: Cosmic rays

Cosmic rays are charged subatomic particles that hit the earth with different levels of intensity. Hess' discovery in 1911 eventually led to his being a co-recipient the Nobel Prize for physics in 1936. For more information about Hess and his work, check out this link:

http://www.aboutnuclear.org/view.cgi?fC=History,Hall_of_Fame,Victor_F._Hess

-Trufflesss

Answer: A new type of supernovae

Astronomers found six supernovae with different compositions from normal. These supernovae, lacking hydrogen, and being brighter than normal, have actually led to a new classification of supernovae.

For more information on this discovery, follow this link:

http://www.signonsandiego.com/news/2011/jun/08/astronomers-discover-supernovae-palomar/

-Trufflesss