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Early Astronomers Two Trivia Quiz

This quiz is a little more difficult than the first. The astronomers may be from any century.

A multiple-choice quiz by almach. Estimated time: 4 mins.

Author
almach

Time
4 mins

Type
Multiple Choice

Quiz #
91,339

Updated
Dec 03 21

# Qns
10

Difficulty
Tough

Avg Score
6 / 10

Plays
489

One at a Time - Single Page - Timed Game

Question 1 of 10

1. Who managed to compile the first known star atlas? Hint

Tycho Brahe

Aristarchus

Hipparchus

Copernicus

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Question 2 of 10

2. Who made the first accurate estimate of the size of the Milky Way galaxy? Hint

Edwin Hubble

Harlow Shapley

George Hale

Fred Whipple

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Question 3 of 10

3. Who wrote the Theory of Relativity? Hint

Edwin Hubble

Isaac Newton

Albert Einstein

George Hale

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Question 4 of 10

4. Who discovered the fourth closest star to the Sun? Hint

William Herschel

Edward Barnard

Heinrich D'Arrest

John Herschel

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Question 5 of 10

5. Who is the 200-inch telescope on Mt. Palomar named after? Hint

Edward Barnard

Edward Palomar

Edwin Hubble

George Ellery Hale

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Question 6 of 10

6. Who discovered pulsars? Hint

Arthur Edington

Albert Einstein

Jocelyn Bell and Antony Hewish

George Pulsar

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Question 7 of 10

7. Who was the first female astronomer to be voted in the American Academy of Arts and Sciences? Hint

Cecilia Payne Gaposchkin

Annie Jump Cannon

Maria Mitchell

Vera Rubin

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Question 8 of 10

8. Who established the two different classes of stars? Hint

Jan Oort

William Huggins

Walter Baade

Fred Hoyle

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Question 9 of 10

9. Who made the first photograph of a stellar spectrum? Hint

Bart Jan Bok

Arthur Eddington

Allen Sandage

Henry Draper

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Question 10 of 10

10. Who came up with the term 'Big Bang'? Hint

Albert Einstein

Joseph-Louis Lagrange

WIlliam Huggins

Sir Fred Hoyle

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Quiz Answer Key and Fun Facts

1. Who managed to compile the first known star atlas?

Answer: Hipparchus

Hipparchus devised the magnitude system as well. He lived from 190 B.C. to 120 B.C.

2. Who made the first accurate estimate of the size of the Milky Way galaxy?

Answer: Harlow Shapley

Harlow Shapley was born on November 2, 1885, in Nashville, Missouri. As a result of his work, the size of the galaxy grew by about a factor of ten (This estimate did not account for the absorbtion rate of interstellar dust). He died on October 20, 1972, just short of his 87th birthday.

3. Who wrote the Theory of Relativity?

Answer: Albert Einstein

Albert Einstein wrote it in 1905 while still in his twenties.

4. Who discovered the fourth closest star to the Sun?

Answer: Edward Barnard

Edward Barnard discovered "Barnard's Star" in 1916, it is six light years away. The only closer stars are the three stars of the Alpha Centauri system at 4.3 light years away.

5. Who is the 200-inch telescope on Mt. Palomar named after?

Answer: George Ellery Hale

It is known as the Hale telescope. George Ellery Hale also helped in building the largest refractor in the world, the Alvan Clark 40", at Yerkes Observatory and the 100 inch Hooker (reflector) telescope at Mount Wilson.

6. Who discovered pulsars?

Answer: Jocelyn Bell and Antony Hewish

They discovered them in 1967. Pulsars are rapidly spinning neutron stars. The Crab Nebula, M1, in the constellation Taurus, is a pulsar.

7. Who was the first female astronomer to be voted in the American Academy of Arts and Sciences?

Answer: Maria Mitchell

Maria Mitchell did research in studying the surface features of the giant planets Jupiter and Saturn and in photographing stars. Annie Jump Cannon did research classifying and cataloging stars according to their stellar spectra, among other pursuits in astronomy. Cecilia Payne Gaposchkin was the first person (male or female) to receive an Ph.D. in astronomy from Harvard University. Vera Rubin's work in astrophysics resulted in conclusive evidence pointing to the presence of dark matter in galaxies.

8. Who established the two different classes of stars?

Answer: Walter Baade

Population I stars are younger and hotter, while the Population II stars are older and cooler. Walter Baade was born in Germany on March 24, 1893 and died on June 25, 1960.

9. Who made the first photograph of a stellar spectrum?

Answer: Henry Draper

That star was Vega in the constellation Lyra. He photographed the spectra of over a hundred stars. He also determined that the Great Nebula in Orion (M42) is a dust cloud.

10. Who came up with the term 'Big Bang'?

Answer: Sir Fred Hoyle

Sir Fred Hoyle, who was a proponent of the steady state theory of the universe, did not believe in the Big Bang theory, for which he is credited with coining its name.

Source: Author almach

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