CIE IGCSE Physics

Topic Questions

IGCSEPhysicsCIETopic Questions6. Space Physics6.2 Stars & The Universe

6.2 Stars & The Universe

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11 mark

Which two elements are the most commonly found in the Sun?

  • Hydrogen and oxygen

  • Helium and carbon

  • Hydrogen and helium

  • Nitrogen and oxygen

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21 mark

Light from distant galaxies appears red-shifted to observers on Earth.

Which of the following ideas does this provide evidence for?

    

1. The Big Bang Theory

2. The Universe is expanding

3. Distant Galaxies are moving both towards us and away from us

  • 1 only

  • 1 and 2

  • 2 only

  • 1, 2 and 3

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31 mark

Extended

 

Which of the following describes the lifecycle of a star about the size of the Sun?

  • interstellar hydrogen clouds → protostar → main sequence star → red supergiant  → black hole

  • interstellar hydrogen clouds → planetary nebula → main sequence star → red giant  → protostar→ white dwarf

  • interstellar hydrogen clouds → protostar → main sequence star → red giant  → planetary nebula → white dwarf

  • interstellar hydrogen clouds → protostar → main sequence star → red supergiant  → neutron star

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41 mark

Extended

 

What does the constant 2.2 × 10–18 s–1 represent?

  • 1 light year

  • Red-shift

  • The CMBR

  • The Hubble constant

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51 mark

Which part of the electromagnetic spectrum does the Sun radiate most of its energy in?

  •  radio, visible and gamma

  •  infrared, visible and ultraviolet

  •  infrared, X-rays and gamma

  •  infrared, visible and gamma

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11 mark

Which is the correct value of one light year?

  • 9.5 × 1015 km

  • 9.5 × 1015 m

  • 9.5 × 1015 s

  • 9.5 × 1015 days

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21 mark

The planet Uranus has an average orbital radius of 4 500 million km. How long does it take light from the Sun to travel to Uranus?

  • 4 minutes

  • 1 hour

  • 4 hours

  • 4 days

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31 mark

Galactic speeds and distances cannot be measured directly as speed and distance are on Earth. Instead they must be measured using indirect methods. Select the correct row from the table.

  Galactic speeds Galactic distances
A redshift redshift
B redshift brightness of supernovae
C brightness of supernovae redshift
D brightness of supernovae brightness of supernovae

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41 mark

Hubble's equation states that the Hubble Constant, 

H subscript 0 space equals space v over d

What does the equation allow astronomers to calculate?

  1. The distance to other galaxies
  2. The speed of galactic recession
  3. The age of the Universe

  • 1 only

  • 1 and 3

  • 3 only

  • 1, 2 and 3

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51 mark

Extended

 

The Andromeda galaxy is 2.5 million light-years away from Earth. What is the velocity of the galaxy as it moves away from Earth?

1 light year  ≈ 9.5 × 1015 m

The Hubble constant ≈ 2.2 × 10–18 s–1

  • 5200 m/s

  • 52 km/s

  • 5.2 km/s

  • 520 km/s

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11 mark

Which of the four possible shapes of galaxies shown could be the Milky Way?

6-2-q2-medium-galaxies

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21 mark

Which is the best description of redshift?

  • Distant galaxies only emit light from the red end of the spectrum.

  • Only red light can reach Earth from very distant stars.

  • Stars in the Milky Way mostly emit light at the red end of the spectrum,

  • The light received from distant galaxies is moved towards the red end of the spectrum.

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31 mark

How many years would it take light to travel from the centre of the Milky Way to the outer edge?

  • 500 years 

  • 50 000 years

  • 100 000 years

  • 100 000 light years

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41 mark

What is the process which makes stable stars such as the Sun shine, and which element produced in the reaction?

  Process Element
A fusion oxygen
B fission hydrogen
C fusion helium
D fission hydrogen

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51 mark

Extended

 

Which of the following equations represents the age of the Universe?

  • t

  • H0

  • v over d

  • d over v

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