Solar Motions

1. Which of the following reporesents the sun's path at this location on December 21st?



A - A'
B - B'
C - C'

2. Where was the observer if C - C' represents the sun's path on June 21st?



90° N
23½° N
0°
23½° S

3. On which of the following dates could path B - B' have been drawn?



January 5th and November 8th
June 23rd and December 19th
March 21st and September 22nd
May 18th and August 5th

4. What was the noon altitude of the sun on the day path B - B' was drawn?



23½°
43°
73°
90°

5. If this diagram represents a location in New York State, on which of the following dates might this solar path have been recorded?



March 21st and September 22nd
June 21st and September 22nd
June 21st and December 21st
March 21st and December 21st

6. At which of the following locations was this celestial sphere recorded?



Binghamton, NY
Toronto, Canada
Lisbon, Portugal
Sydney, Australia

7. On which date was the sun's path shown in the diagram probably recorded?



June 21st
September 23rd
December 21st
March 21st

8. At which location and date was this celestial sphere diagram recorded?



March 21st, 23½° N lat.
June 21st, 23½° S lat.
September 23rd, 0° lat.
December 21st, 23½° N lat.

9. Based on this celestial sphere diagram, what is the location of the observer?



90° N latitude
23½° N latitude
0° latitude
90° S latitude

10. What date is represented by the diagram?



March 21st
June 21st
September 22nd
December 21st

11. What is the season in the northern hemisphere when the Earth is at position B?



Winter
Spring
Summer
Fall

12. Which graph represents the angle of the sun on September 23rd from 6AM to 6PM as viewed from a location in New York State?



1
2
3
4

13. The diagram shows the moon's orbital path around the earth. Approximately how long does it take the moon to move from position 1 to position 5 ?



12 hours
2 weeks
6 months
1 year

14. Which diagram correctly shows the position of Polaris as seen by an observer in New York State?



1
2
3
4

15. The diagram shows the moon in it's orbit around the Earth. In which position would an observer on Earth see a full moon?



1
2
3
4

16. The shaded area represents night while the unshaed portion of the map is in daylight. Which day of the year does this map represent?



March 21st
June 21st
September 21st
December 21st

17. Besides the Earth, which two planets are depicted in the diagram?



Venus and Mars
Mars and Jupiter
Neptune and Pluto
Mercury and Venus

18. As the planet makes one complete orbit around the star starting at the position shown, the gravitational attraction between the planet and the star will



Increase, then decrease
Decrease, then increase
Remain the same
Decrease, then increase, then decrease again

19. As the Earth gets closer to the sun in its orbit, its orbital speed will increase because

Potential energy increases.
Potential energy is changed to kinetic energy.
Kinetic energy is changed to potential energy.
Kinetic energy decreases.

20. In New York State, to see the Sun at noon, one would look towards the

North
South
East
West

21. When the orbital velocity of the Earth is greatest, what is the season of the year in the Northern Hemisphere?

Winter
Spring
Summer
Fall

22. In the Earth's orbit of the Sun, as the Earth comes closer to the Sun, the rate of the Earth's rotation

Increases
Decreases
Remains the same

23. Which planetary model allows scientists to predict the exact positions of the planets in the night sky over many years

The orbits of the planets are circles in a geocentric model.
The orbits of the planets are ellipses in a geocentric model.
The orbits of the planets are circles in a heliocentric model.
The orbits of the planets are ellipses in a heliocentric model.

24. In the geocentric model (the Earth at the center of the universe), which motion would occur?

The Earth would revolve around the Sun.
The Earth would rotate on it's axis.
The Moon would revolve around the Sun.
The Sun would revolve around the Earth.

25. As viewed by an observer in New York State from sunrise to sunset, the length of a shadow cast by a vertical pole would

Increase only
Decrease only
Increase then decrease
Decrease then increase

BACK