1. You see mostly red light; the blue and green disappear.
2. You see mostly blue light; the other colors disappear.
3. All of the colors turn red.

Which of the following models can explain what a red filter does to light?

1. Filters add color to light - red adds red, and so on.
2. Filters add a complementary color to light - red adds blue, for example.
3. Light is like little bullets, but there are different kinds of bullets. Filters stop some bullets, but not others.

If the light hitting the prism goes through a red filter first, what will you end up seeing on the screen?

1. The light that passes through the prism will be white.
2. The light that passes through the prism will be red.
3. The light that passes through the prism will be everything except red.
4. No light will pass through the prism.

What is the meaning of the pictured experiment?

1. Prisms create new colors from white light.
2. Prisms add new colors to white light.
3. White light is a mixture of light with different colors.
4. Yellow light is a mixture of light with different colors.

A person's clothes appear dark blue when the fluorescent lights (white light) are on. How will the person's clothes appear when the street lamp (which emits pure yellow light) is on?

1. The clothes will appear blue.
2. The clothes will appear green.
3. The clothes will appear black.
4. The clothes will appear yellow.

A person's clothes appear dark red when the fluorescent lights (white light) are on. How will the person's clothes appear when the street lamp (which emits pure yellow light) is on?

1. The clothes will appear red.
2. The clothes will appear orange.
3. The clothes will appear black.
4. The clothes will appear yellow.

If you look at a blue dot on the screen through a red filter, what will you see?

1. A blue dot.
2. A red dot.
3. A black dot.
4. A white dot.

If you look at a red dot on the screen through a blue filter, what will you see?

1. A blue dot.
2. A red dot.
3. A black dot.
4. A white dot.

Compared to other colors of visible light, red light has

1. higher energy and longer wavelength.
2. lower energy and longer wavelength.
3. lower energy and shorter wavelength.
4. higher energy and shorter wavelength.

If you removed the green and orange light coming from an object that is releasing the mixture below, what would the spectrum look like?

Answer: A. Hint: Green and orange are kinds of light on their own.

Which of the following spectrums represents the light from red and blue TV dots?

Answer: D. Hint: A red dot on your TV screen don't exclusively release red light, but it does mostly release light near red in wavelength.

Which of the following is true?

1. Radio photons have a longer wavelength than optical photons.
2. X-ray photons have a larger frequency than optical photons.
3. Infrared photons have a smaller energy than optical photons.
4. All of the above.
5. None of the above.

1. The filament will start out dark, then become faint and reddish, then become bright and white.
2. The filament will start out dark, then become faint and white, then become bright and white.
3. The filament will start out dark, then become faint and white, then become bright and red.

At a particular temperature, the light bulb appears orangish in color if you look at it with only your eye. What color has to be added in large amounts to get it to appear whiter?

1. red
2. orange
3. blue

As I increase the temperature of the light bulb filament, one student watches the color blue in the rainbow, while another student watches the color red. What will the two students see?

1. Both colors get brighter.
2. The color blue gets brighter, but the color red gets fainter.
3. The color red gets brighter, but the color blue gets fainter.
4. Both colors get fainter.

Which color will become visible last as the temperature of the light bulb filament is increased?

1. red
2. orange
3. yellow
4. green
5. blue
6. violet

Police are following a suspect at night in San Diego using an infrared camera. If the suspect jumps into the harbor, what will be seen on the camera?

1. The suspect is dark, but becomes bright after jumping in.
2. The suspect is dark, even after jumping in the water.
3. The suspect is bright, even after jumping in the water.
4. The suspect is bright, but becomes dark after jumping in.

Using the graph below, which of the following best describes how star A compares to star B?

1. Star A gives off more red light than star B.
2. Both stars give off the same amount of red light.
3. Star B gives off more red light than star A.
4. None of the above.

The graph below shows the blackbody spectra for three different stars. Which of the stars has the reddest peak wavelength?

1. Star A.
2. Star B.
3. Star C.

The graph below shows the blackbody spectra for three different stars. Which of the stars has the highest temperature?

1. Star A.
2. Star B.
3. Star C.

In the graph below, which of the statements best describes how star A appears in comparison to star B?

1. Star A looks redder than star B.
2. Both stars look reddish.
3. Both stars look bluish.
4. Star A looks redder than star B.
5. None of the above.

Stars A and C sit at the same distance from you. According to the graph below, which of these statements is true?

1. Star A is smaller than star C.
2. Star A is larger than star C.
3. The stars have the same size.
4. It is impossible to tell from this graph.

The Sun appears to have a yellow-white color to our naked eyes. If you were to look at another star that was hotter than the Sun, which of the following tints could it be?

1. red
2. yellow
3. yellow-white
4. blue-white

Two stars have the same size, but different surface temperatures: one has a temperature equal to that of the Sun (about 5800 degrees Kelvin), while the other has a temperature twice that. Which of the following is NOT true?

1. The hotter star is brighter than the cooler star.
2. The hotter star emits more blue light than the cooler star.
3. The hotter star emits more red light than the cooler star.
4. The most intense light from the hotter star has a longer wavelength than the most intense light from the cool star.

Earth and human beings both emit thermal radiation. Earth's average temperature is similar to that of a human being. What kind of light does Earth emit the most of? (Ignore what Earth reflects.)

1. Ultraviolet
2. Visible
3. Infrared
4. Earth doesn't release any light on its own.

1. The liquid is not doing anything to the light that hits it.
2. Most of the violet, blue, and green light is bouncing off the liquid and coming to your eyes.
3. Most of the yellow, orange, and red light is bouncing off the liquid and coming to your eyes.

When I pass the jug of clear blue liquid in front of the light bulb, what will you see in the spectrum?

1. The jug will make the violet, blue and green light more intense.
2. The jug will make the yellow, orange, and red light more intense.
3. The jug will remove most of the violet, blue, and green light.
4. The jug will remove most of the yellow, orange and red light.

Which of the following patterns most closely correponds to the pattern of lines you saw in the spectrum in class?

Answer: D. Hint: I include this question just to remind you that the pattern of lines can be used to uniquely identify the chemical creating the lines. (This spectrum was for hydrogen gas.)

Imagine that you are on the surface of Earth (below the atmosphere) and are observing the Sun. What kind of spectrum would you observe by analyzing the sunlight?

1. a continuous spectrum
2. an emission line spectrum
3. an absorption line spectrum

Imagine that you are on looking at two different spectra of the Sun. Spectrum number #1 is obtained using a telescope in orbit high above Earth's atmosphere. Spectrum #2 is obtained using a telescope on Earth. Which spectrum comes from the telescope on Earth (#2)?

Answer: Bottom. Hint: Earth's atmosphere absorbs some of the sunlight passing through it, adding new lines to the spectrum.

Imagine that white light is falling on your red shirt. If you took a spectrum of the light reflecting off your shirt, what would you see?

1. Red would be one of the brightest colors.
2. Red would be one of the darkest colors.
3. Red would be completely removed from the spectrum.

1. There is no force on the electrons.
2. A force must be continuously changing the direction each electron is moving in.
3. There are two equal and opposite forces acting on each electron.

The electrical force attracts an electron to a proton. To move an electron from a low orbit to a high orbit (farther from the proton), what has to happen?

1. Energy has to be absorbed.
2. Energy has to be released.
3. Nothing has to happen - the electron will change orbits on its own.

A green photon must be absorbed to get an electron to move from the ground state to an excited state (a larger orbit). To get the electron to move to a higher excited state (an even larger orbit), what kind of photon might the electron be able to absorb?

1. green
2. red
3. blue

An atom has energy levels with energies of 0, 3, and 5 units. The energy level with an energy of 5 units is the outermost boundary of the atom. Assuming this atom has a single electron in the ``0'' energy level (the ground state), which of the following photon energies can the electron absorb to move it to another orbit?

1. 3 units only.
2. 3 units or 2 units.
3. 3 units or 5 units.
4. 3 units or 8 units.
5. 5 units only.
6. 8 units only.

An atom has energy levels with energies of 0, 3, 9, and 10 units. The energy level with an energy of 10 units is the outermost boundary of the atom. Assuming this atom has a single electron in the ``3'' energy level, which of the following photon energies can the electron absorb but still remain attached to the atom? (There are two correct answers.)

1. 1 unit.
2. 3 units.
3. 6 units.
4. 7 units.
5. 8 units.
6. 9 units.
7. 10 units.

Atom X has energy levels with energies of 0 and 10 units. Atom Y has energy levels with energies of 0 and 12 units. In each atom, an electron moves from the upper energy level to the lower energy level, emitting a single photon in the process. Which of the photons has longer wavelength?

1. The photon from atom X.
2. The photon from atom Y.
3. The photons will have the same wavelength.

1. pushing against each other
2. pulling apart.
3. sliding by each other in opposite directions.
4. sliding in the same direction.

What happens to the crust where extension occurs?

1. It bulges upward, forming a mountain range.
2. It sinks down into the mantle, forming a basin.
3. It stretches, forming cracks and valleys.
4. Nothing, Extension does not change the crust.

Where are most of the volcanoes on Earth that have been mapped?

1. On land in warm climates
2. Around the edges of the Atlantic Ocean.
3. Around the edges of the Pacific Ocean.
4. Around the edges of all of the continents.
5. On islands.

Imagine an impact occurred on the continental plate millions and millions of years ago, leaving a crater near the base of the volcano. Why would there be little evidence of this crater found today?

1. The continental plate would be melted, along with the crater.
2. More recent impacts would make craters that would erase the old ones.
3. Lava flows from the volcano would cover it up over time.

In the image below, how heavily covered with craters is Mars?

1. The surface was almost entirely covered with craters.
2. There was a medium number of craters, spread all over the surface.
3. There was a medium number of craters, mostly on one side of the planet.
4. There were a small number of visible craters.
5. There were no craters visible.

Is there a relationship between the number of craters and either the distance of the planet from the Sun or the size of the planet?

1. Planets that are closer to the Sun have more craters.
2. Planets that are closer to the Sun have fewer craters.
3. Larger planets have more craters.
4. Larger planets have fewer craters.
5. There is no apparent relationship.

Imagine the pictures below were taken of an area of the Moon with craters at various times in the past. What is the correct order of the pictures from past to present?

1. I, II, III
2. I, III, II
3. II, III, I
4. II, I, III
5. III, I, II
6. III, II, I

The dark grey area is one of the Moon's maria. How old is the lava in it compared to the other craters?

1. The lava is probably older than most of the craters.
2. The lava is probably about the same age as most of the craters.
3. The lava is probably younger than most of the craters.

In the picture of Mars' surface below, there are several overlapping features. ``A'' is a volcano, ``B'' and ``C'' are craters, and ``D'' is the surface of the flat plain that surrounds everything. Keeping in mind that the surface of the plain might have been covered up by lava from another volcano, which is the correct order of their ages (from oldest to youngest)?

1. D, A, B, C
2. D, C, A, B
3. D, A, C, B
4. B, C, A, D
5. A, C, D, B
6. A, D, C, B

In the picture of Mars' surface below, which is older?

1. The large crater.
2. The erosion channels.
3. They are about the same age

In the picture of Mars' surface below, "A" is the set of gullies, "B" is the crater and splashed rock on the right side, and "C" is the crater at the top. What is the order from oldest to youngest?

1. A, B, C
2. A, C, B
3. B, A, C
4. B, C, A
5. C, A, B
6. C, B, A

In the picture of Venus' surface below, "1" is the set of long cracks (from tectonics), and "2" and "3" are lava domes. What is the order from oldest to youngest?

1. 1, 2, 3
2. 2, 1, 3
3. 2, 3, 1
4. 1, 3, 2
5. 3, 1, 2
6. 3, 2, 1

Is there a relationship between the number of volcanoes and either a planet's i) distance from the Sun or ii) its size?

1. Planets that are closer to the Sun have more volcanoes.
2. Planets that are closer to the Sun have fewer volcanoes.
3. Larger planets have more volcanoes.
4. Larger planets have fewer volcanoes.
5. There is no apparent relationship.

Suppose a terrestrial planet the same age as Earth is discovered orbiting another star, and it is your job to predict what it is like. If the planet is known to have mass and size smaller than Venus, but more than Mars, what would be the best prediction based on our understanding of the solar system?

1. It should have no volcanoes.
2. It should have volcanoes, but they may or may not be active.
3. It should have a number of active volcanoes spread evenly over the surface.
4. It should have a large number of active volcanoes found only in small areas of the surface.

When a certain rock solidified, it contained 4% chemical X. Chemical X radioactively decays to form chemical Y and has a half-life of 80 million years. If the rock now has 1% chemical X, how old is the rock?

1. 10 million years
2. 20 million years
3. 40 million years
4. 80 million years
5. 160 million years
6. 320 million years

The choices below describe 4 hypothetical planets. Which one's surface would you expect to be most crowded with impact craters? (Assume they orbit a star just like the Sun and are the same age as the planets in our solar system.)

Size	Distance from Sun	Rotation Rate
1. same as Venus	same as Mars	every 25 hours
2. same as Moon	same as Mars	every 10 days
3. same as Mars	same as Earth	every 10 hours
4. twice Earth size	same as Mercury	every 6 months

Answer: 2. The smallest planets are geologically dead, and haven't been able to clean up most of the craters that were left very early in the solar system's history.

What would a large terrestrial planet be like if it was far from the Sun?

1. Many volcanoes and craters, and much erosion.
2. Many volcanoes and much erosion, but few craters.
3. Many volcanoes, but few craters and little erosion.
4. Many craters and much erosion, but few volcanoes.
5. Many craters, but few volcanoes and little erosion.
6. Few craters or volcanoes, and little erosion.

1. The gas removes light having specific wavelengths and produces an absorption line spectrum.
2. The gas adds light having specific wavelengths and produces an emission line spectrum.
3. The gas adds all kinds of light and produces a continuous spectrum.
4. The gas doesn't do anything to the light, leaving a continuous spectrum.

The temperature of the parts of Jupiter's atmosphere that we can see from space is around -200 degrees F. What would we see if we look at the visible light portion of Jupiter's spectrum?

1. A continuous spectrum
2. An emission line spectrum
3. An absorption line spectrum

What gas in Earth's atmosphere is suspected of causing global warming?

1. ozone
2. nitrogen
3. carbon dioxide

What does ozone gas do in Earth's atmosphere?

1. It allows infrared light to pass freely, but it blocks and absorbs visible light.
2. It allows visible light to pass freely, but it blocks and absorbs infrared light.
3. It allows visible and infrared light to pass freely, but it blocks ultraviolet light.

The arrows in the diagrams below represent the rate of heat flowing into and out of a greenhouse. In which case will the greenhouse heat up?

Answer: B. Hint: More heat is flowing into the greenhouse than is coming out, and with the increased amount of heat inside, the temperature will go up.

What would Earth's temperature be like if Earth reflected more of the sulight hitting it?

1. It would be higher.
2. It would be lower.
3. It would be about the same as it is now.

1. Neptune is hot enough to be releasing mostly blue light.
2. Neptune is cold enough to be releasing mostly blue light.
3. Gases in Neptune's atmosphere absorb most of the blue light coming from the Sun.
4. Gases in Neptune's atmosphere absorb most of the red light coming from the Sun.

Jupiter's Great Red Spot is a deep red color. Which of the following could be a reason for this?

1. The Spot is hot enough to be releasing mostly red light.
2. The Spot is cool enough to be releasing mostly red light.
3. Gases in the Spot absorb most of the blue light coming from the Sun.
4. Gases in the Spot absorb most of the red light coming from the Sun.

1. More than 99%
2. About 75% (only a 1 in 4 chance they wouldn't)
3. About 50%
4. About 25% (only a 1 in 4 chance they would)
5. Less than 1%

Which of the pictures below shows Earth correctly scaled in comparison to the Sun?

Answer: C. Hint: All of the planets go around the Sun for a reason --- it has hundreds of thousands times more mass than the Earth does!

If you added together all of the planets, how would their mass compare to the mass of the Sun?

1. The planets are miniscule compared to the Sun's mass.
2. The planets add up to about half the Sun's mass.
3. The planets add up to about the same as the Sun's mass.
4. The planets add up to more than the Sun's mass.

If your daring professor sits in the ``CHAIR OF DEATH'' with his arms outstretched and starts himself rotating, what will happen if he pulls his arms in toward his body?

1. He will start to spin much slower.
2. He will keep spinning at the same speed.
3. He will start to spin much faster.
4. Something horrible will happen...

What will happen if he moves his arms up and down, parallel to his spin axis?

1. He will start to spin much slower.
2. He will keep spinning at the same speed.
3. He will start to spin much faster.
4. Something even more horrible will happen...

What would happen to a cloud that collapsed without any rotation at all?

1. There would not be planets orbiting the Sun.
2. The planets would be closer to the Sun.
3. The planets would be farther from the Sun.

What kind of material would you expect to be able to condense out of the gas closest to the Sun?

1. Snowflakes (icy material).
2. Dust grains made of rocky material.
3. Metallic dust grains.
4. Liquid hydrogen droplets.

The dense terrestrial planets tend to be located nearer the Sun because

1. it is predicted by Newton's Laws
2. the gravity of the Sun affects them more.
3. it was hotter near the Sun when these planets formed.

Which of the following statements describes the meaning of condensation?

1. Solid objects colliding and sticking.
2. Solid objects colliding and breaking up.
3. Solid or liquid material turning into gas.
4. Gas turning into solid or liquid.

Which of the following pairs of planets formed at temperatures below the freezing point of water?

1. Mercury and Venus
2. Venus and Earth
3. Mars and Jupiter
4. Earth and Jupiter
5. Jupiter and Saturn

Would it have been possible for a large Jupiter-like planet to form in the location of Mars?

1. yes
2. no

Imagine the young solar system has a disk of orbiting dirt and ice particles. As time went on, particles collided and stuck together to make larger objects. As a result, new collisions started happening

1. more frequently.
2. at about the same rate.
3. less frequently.

Which of these facts is NOT explained by nebular theory?

1. There are two main types of planets: terrestrial and jovian.
2. Planets orbit in the same direction and plane.
3. The existence of asteroids and comets.
4. The number of planets of each type (4 terrestrial and 4 jovian).

What kinds of liquid or solid materials could be present far from the Sun when the solar system was forming?

1. Dirt (rocky and metallic material) only.
2. Snowflakes (icy material) only.
3. Liquid hydrogen droplets only.
4. Dirt and snowflakes.
5. Snowflakes and liquid hydrogen droplets.
6. Dirt, snowflakes, and liquid hydrogen droplets.

J. P. Adams, D. J. Loranz, E. E. Prather, and T. F. Slater. Lecture Tutorials for Introductory Astronomy -- Instructor's Guide, 2002 (Prentice Hall).