ASTR 1020 Spring 2020: Study Guide for Quiz #3
Topics you should know and
understand for Quiz #3
(not necessarily a complete list)
ASSIGNED READINGS FOR THIS QUIZ:
Chapters 15, 18, 19;
Sections 17.7 - 17.8; Sections 20.1 - 20.5;
Section 21.2.
1) DEFINITIONS:
Visual binary; astrometric binary;
astrometry;
spectroscopic binary; double-lined
spectroscopic binary; single-lined spectroscopic binary; eclipsing
binary star;
light curve;
brown dwarf;
extrasolar planet (exoplanet);
white dwarf;
interstellar medium; interstellar gas; interstellar dust;
emission nebulae; HII region;
supernova remnant;
planetary nebulae;
dark cloud;
21 cm HI line; atomic cloud; HI cloud;
molecular cloud; dark cloud;
globule; reflection nebula;
interstellar reddening; angular momentum; angular momentum conservation;
protostar; stellar evolution;
electron degeneracy pressure;
Pauli Exclusion Principle;
Red Giant stars; horizontal branch stars; asymptotic giant branch (AGB);
planetary nebulae;
alpha particle; the triple-alpha process; main
sequence turn-off; variable star; the CNO cycle; supernovae; supernova remnant;
Chandrasekhar limit;
2) MATHEMATICAL RELATIONSHIPS:
Linear momentum is proportional to mass X velocity;
angular momentum is proportional to mass X velocity x size;
The relationship between the mass
of a main sequence star and its luminosity;
the approximate formula for the main sequence lifetime of stars
in terms of their mass.
3) OTHER THINGS YOU SHOULD KNOW:
The seven basic spectral types of stars and their relative temperatures;
Three ways to get radii of stars (direct angular measurement,
Stefan's Law, eclipsing binary);
Two ways to determine the mass of a star (binary systems, the mass-luminosity
relation for main sequence stars);
How extrasolar
planets are found;
which emission lines are easily
detected in atomic, molecular, and ionized interstellar
clouds;
four ways to detect interstellar dust (blocking light
from objects behind a dense
interstellar cloud; reddening of background
stars; thermal emission in the
far-infrared; scattering of short-wavelength light).
two reasons why near-infrared observations are best for finding protostars;
why protostars are hot compared to
interstellar clouds, even before nuclear fusion stars;
what happens to the spin rate of an interstellar cloud when
it contracts,
and why; the steps in the formation of a star and what causes each step to
occur; what the possible triggers of star formation are;
approximate main sequence lifetimes for OV, GV, and MV stars;
how to determine the age of a star cluster from its H-R diagram;
The steps in the triple-alpha process; The stages in the lifetime
of a main
sequence star;
The stages in the lifetime of a high mass star;
The CNO cycle.