Eratosthenes' Measurement of Earth's Circumference
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Questions and Answers

What is the Greek meaning of 'Planetes'?

  • Moving stars
  • Fixed stars
  • Shining stars
  • Wandering stars (correct)

    • What is the apparent yearly motion of stars and other celestial bodies across the sky due to Earth's revolution?

  • Monthly motion
  • Annual motion (correct)
  • Diurnal motion
  • Hourly motion

    • What is the collective name for the thirteen constellations?

  • Zodiac (correct)
  • Cosmos
  • Galaxy
  • Aurora

    • What occurs when the sun crosses the celestial equator?

    <p>Equinox</p> Signup and view all the answers

    What happens to the Earth's axis during equinoxes?

    <p>It is tilted neither towards nor away from the sun</p> Signup and view all the answers

    What occurs when the sun is at the farthest declination from the celestial equator?

    <p>Solstice</p> Signup and view all the answers

    What was observed by ancient astronomers about the motion of planets?

    <p>The planets seem to move westward and then eastward.</p> Signup and view all the answers

    What instrument did Tycho Brahe use to record the position of the sun, moon, and planets?

    <p>Giant protractors</p> Signup and view all the answers

    What was Johannes Kepler able to derive from Tycho Brahe's data?

    <p>The orbital path of Mars is elliptical.</p> Signup and view all the answers

    What is the shape of the orbits of all the planets according to Kepler's First Law?

    <p>Elliptical</p> Signup and view all the answers

    What is the significance of the line joining a planet and the Sun according to Kepler's Second Law?

    <p>It sweeps out equal areas in space in equal intervals of time.</p> Signup and view all the answers

    What is the relationship between a planet's orbital period and its semimajor axis?

    <p>The square of the orbital period is proportional to the cube of the semimajor axis</p> Signup and view all the answers

    What was the reason Tycho Brahe was not able to develop a better model than Ptolemy's?

    <p>He did not have the ability to analyze his data.</p> Signup and view all the answers

    What is the main difference between natural and violent motion according to Aristotle?

    <p>Natural motion is inherent, while violent motion is imposed</p> Signup and view all the answers

    What is the term for the movement or change in location of an object over time?

    <p>Motion</p> Signup and view all the answers

    What is the characteristic of a motion that is uniformly accelerated, according to Galileo?

    <p>Its speed increases by equal increments in equal times</p> Signup and view all the answers

    What is the relationship between a planet's speed and its distance from the sun?

    <p>A planet moves fastest when it is nearest to the sun</p> Signup and view all the answers

    What were the four elements that Aristotle considered as the proper places?

    <p>Earth, water, air, and fire</p> Signup and view all the answers

    What is the main characteristic of horizontal motion?

    <p>It occurs in a straight line without any external force.</p> Signup and view all the answers

    What was the approximate distance in kilometers that Eratosthenes estimated to be the Earth's circumference?

    <p>40,000 km</p> Signup and view all the answers

    What was the primary reason behind the Greeks' preference for a spherical Earth?

    <p>Sense of symmetry</p> Signup and view all the answers

    What was the main point of contention between Aristotle and Galileo regarding horizontal motion?

    <p>The need for external force to maintain motion.</p> Signup and view all the answers

    What was the purpose of Galileo's experiment at the Leaning Tower of Pisa?

    <p>To show that the rate of fall is independent of an object's mass.</p> Signup and view all the answers

    What was the central idea behind the geocentric model developed by 4th-century BC Greek philosophers?

    <p>The Sun, Moon, and planets orbit the Earth</p> Signup and view all the answers

    According to Aristotle, what determines the rate of fall of an object?

    <p>The object's mass.</p> Signup and view all the answers

    What is the primary function of a telescope in astronomy?

    <p>To see faraway objects</p> Signup and view all the answers

    How did Eratosthenes calculate the Earth's circumference?

    <p>By measuring the distance between Syene and Alexandria</p> Signup and view all the answers

    What was the limitation of Galileo's experiment at the Leaning Tower of Pisa?

    <p>The lack of a vacuum to test the hypothesis.</p> Signup and view all the answers

    What is the main characteristic of free fall?

    <p>It is a type of motion where gravity is the only force acting on an object.</p> Signup and view all the answers

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