Space Quiz - The Final Frontier

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QUIZ

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test your knowledge OF the history of spaceflight, astronomy & planetary science

the final frontier

By Prof. Andrew Norton

58 years

How many years elapsed between the Wright brothers' first powered flight and Yuri Gagarin making the first human spaceflight?

38 years

78 years

01/08

You are a star!

Orville and Wilbur Wright made their first controlled, sustained flight of an engine-powered heavier-than-air aircraft with the Wright Flyer on 17th December 1903, near Kitty Hawk, North Carolina. Nearly 58 years later, on 12th April 1961, Yuri Gagarin became the first human to journey into outer space. Travelling on Vostok 1, he completed one orbit of the Earth in a flight lasting 108 minutes.

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Houston, we have an incorrect answer!

Orville and Wilbur Wright made their first controlled, sustained flight of an engine-powered heavier-than-air aircraft with the Wright Flyer on 17th December 1903, near Kitty Hawk, North Carolina. Nearly 58 years later, on 12th April 1961, Yuri Gagarin became the first human to journey into outer space. Travelling on Vostok 1, he completed one orbit of the Earth in a flight lasting 108 minutes.

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Buzz Aldrin

Who was the second person to walk on the surface of the Moon in July 1969?

Michael Collins

02/08

Neil Armstrong

You are a star!

The Apollo 11 mission marked the first time humans landed on the Moon in history. Commander Neil Armstrong and Lunar Module Pilot Buzz Aldrin landed the Apollo Lunar Module Eagle on 20th July 1969, and Armstrong became the first person to step onto the Moon's surface just over 6 hours later. Aldrin joined him 19 minutes after that, and they spent over two hours together exploring the site they had named Tranquility Base upon landing. Pilot Michael Collins remained in lunar orbit.

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The Apollo 11 mission marked the first time humans landed on the Moon in history. Commander Neil Armstrong and Lunar Module Pilot Buzz Aldrin landed the Apollo Lunar Module Eagle on 20th July 1969, and Armstrong became the first person to step onto the Moon's surface just over 6 hours later. Aldrin joined him 19 minutes after that, and they spent over two hours together exploring the site they had named Tranquility Base upon landing. Pilot Michael Collins remained in lunar orbit.

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Enterprise

What was the name of the first Space Shuttle to complete an orbital spaceflight?

Challenger

Columbia

03/08

You are a star!

Although the first Space Shuttle to complete an atmospheric test flight was named Enterprise, it never carried out an orbital mission. The first orbiter, Columbia, launched on 12 April 1981 and orbited the Earth 37 times. It carried crew John W. Young and pilot Robert L. Crippen. The Space Shuttle Columbia was flown on 28 missions, spending over 300 days in space. Challenger was the second Space Shuttle orbiter to fly into space; it launched on its maiden flight in April 1983.

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Although the first Space Shuttle to complete an atmospheric test flight was named Enterprise, it never carried out an orbital mission. The first orbiter, Columbia, launched on 12 April 1981 and orbited the Earth 37 times. It carried crew John W. Young and pilot Robert L. Crippen. The Space Shuttle Columbia was flown on 28 missions, spending over 300 days in space. Challenger was the second Space Shuttle orbiter to fly into space; it launched on its maiden flight in April 1983.

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Neptune

Which of the listed planets in the Solar system is not considered to be a terrestrial planet?

Mars

Venus

04/08

You are a star!

Mercury, Venus, the Earth, and Mars are considered the terrestrial planets in the solar system. Large satellites such as the Moon, Titan, Io, Europa, Ganymede, and Callisto are also classified as terrestrial (rocky) bodies. Jupiter and Saturn are gas-giant planets, while Neptune and Uranus are classified as ice giants.

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Sorry - That one’s in a different orbit!

Mercury, Venus, the Earth, and Mars are considered the terrestrial planets in the solar system. Large satellites such as the Moon, Titan, Io, Europa, Ganymede, and Callisto are also classified as terrestrial (rocky) bodies. Jupiter and Saturn are gas-giant planets, while Neptune and Uranus are classified as ice giants.

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05/08

PSR B1257+12 b

What was the name of the first extra-solar planet (or exoplanet) discovered orbiting another main-sequence star in 1995?

51 Pegasi b

HD 209458 b

You are a star!

In 1995, astronomers Michel Mayor and Didier Queloz discovered an exoplanet orbiting the main sequence star 51 Pegasi using the radial velocity method. A few years earlier, a planet-like object had also been discovered orbiting the radio pulsar (neutron star) PSR B1257+12, while the first exoplanet found using the transit method was that orbiting the star HD 209458, discovered in 1999.

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That answer fizzled out like a dying star!

In 1995, astronomers Michel Mayor and Didier Queloz discovered an exoplanet orbiting the main sequence star 51 Pegasi using the radial velocity method. A few years earlier, a planet-like object had also been discovered orbiting the radio pulsar (neutron star) PSR B1257+12, while the first exoplanet found using the transit method was that orbiting the star HD 209458, discovered in 1999.

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06/08

Arcturus

Which is the brightest star visible to the naked eye in the night sky?

Canopus

Sirius

You are a star!

The star Sirius in the constellation of Canis Major (the large dog) is the brightest star visible in the night sky. Canopus, in the constellation of Carina (the keel of the ship), is the second brightest and Arcturus, in the constellation of Boötes (the herdsman), is the fourth brightest.

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Houston, we have an incorrect answer!

The star Sirius in the constellation of Canis Major (the large dog) is the brightest star visible in the night sky. Canopus, in the constellation of Carina (the keel of the ship), is the second brightest and Arcturus, in the constellation of Boötes (the herdsman), is the fourth brightest.

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07/08

White dwarf

At the end of its life, what type of object will the Sun evolve into?

Neutron star

Red dwarf

You are a star!

A low-mass star like the Sun will eventually run out of nuclear fuel in about 5 billion years, shed its outer layers, and collapse to form a carbon-oxygen white dwarf. Stars that are much lower in mass than the Sun will live for many billions of years as red dwarf stars, while stars more than ten times the mass of the Sun will end their brief lives in supernova explosions before their cores collapse to form neutron stars.

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Houston, we have an incorrect answer!

A low-mass star like the Sun will eventually run out of nuclear fuel in about 5 billion years, shed its outer layers, and collapse to form a carbon-oxygen white dwarf. Stars that are much lower in mass than the Sun will live for many billions of years as red dwarf stars, while stars more than ten times the mass of the Sun will end their brief lives in supernova explosions before their cores collapse to form neutron stars.

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08/08

The Andromeda galaxy

Which of the galaxies listed is the nearest to the Milky Way?

The Large Magellanic Cloud

Messier 33

You are a star!

Our home Galaxy, the Milky Way, is a large spiral galaxy orbited by dozens of smaller dwarf galaxies, including those known as the Large and Small Magellanic clouds (about 160,000 and 200,000 light years away, respectively. The other two large galaxies in the Local Group are the Andromeda galaxy (about 2.5 million light-years away) and Messier 33 (about 2.7 million light-years away), along with almost 100 smaller galaxies.

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Our home Galaxy, the Milky Way, is a large spiral galaxy orbited by dozens of smaller dwarf galaxies, including those known as the Large and Small Magellanic clouds (about 160,000 and 200,000 light years away, respectively]. The other two large galaxies in the Local Group are the Andromeda galaxy (about 2.5 million light-years away) and Messier 33 (about 2.7 million light-years away), along with almost 100 smaller galaxies.

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