Review Notes for Exam 2

You should be familiar with the topics listed below. You should also review the Learning Objectives (131kB pdf) on topics covered after the first exam. It is an absolute certainty that you will see questions on Kirchhoff's laws of spectroscopy, the H-R diagram, and the proton-proton cycle on the exam. Know them—together they will account for about 30% of the total points on the exam.

  1. Definitions of speed, velocity, acceleration and mass
  2. Isaac Newton (see The Shoulders of Giants part 2, 1.8 MB pdf)
    1. Newton's laws of motion
    2. Newton's law of universal gravitation
  3. Einstein's special theory of relativity (Special Relativity 1.8 MB pdf)
    1. Postulates
    2. Length contraction, mass and time dilation
    3. The twin paradox
    4. Concept of spacetime
  4. Einstein's general theory of relativity (1.3 MB pdf)
    1. Principle of equivalence
    2. Curvature of spacetime
    3. Gravitational waves
    4. Time dilation
  5. Nine Things You Need to Know About Special Relativity (3.2 MB pdf)
  6. The Doppler Effect (Amtrak Texas Eagle on YouTube)
  7. The Electromagnetic Spectrum
    1. Regions of the EM spectrum
    2. The relationship between energy, wavelength, and frequency of EM radiation
    3. Wave-particle duality of EM radiation
  8. Blackbodies
    1. Wien's displacement law and the Stefan-Boltzmann law
    2. Kirchhoff’s laws of spectroscopy
    3. Stellar spectra and their classification
    4. The relationship between luminosity, radius, and effective (i.e. surface) temperature of stars
    5. The spectrum of hydrogen (specifically, the Balmer series) and how it is produced
  9. Distance determinations
    1. Apparent magnitude vs. absolute magnitude
    2. Trigonometric parallax
  10. The Hertzsprung-Russell diagram
  11. Basic Properties of the Stars (The Secret Lives of Stars part 1 huge 12.4 MB pdf!)
  12. The Sun
    1. The solar interior and mechanisms of energy flow
    2. The proton-proton cycle
    3. The Sun's visible features: sunspots, flares, prominences, coronal mass ejections
    4. Properties of the solar atmosphere: photosphere, chomrosphere, transition region and corona
  13. Post-main sequence evolution of a Sun-like star
    1. Core hydrogen depletion and electron degeneracy
    2. Helium flash, triple alpha process, and red giant phase
    3. Helium depletion, red supergiant phase and helium shell flashes, instability and planetary nebula formation
    4. Chandrasekhar limit, white dwarfs and electron degeneracy
  14. Evolution of Massive Stars (The Secret Lives of Stars part 2 Big 8.2 MB pdf)
  15. Post-main sequence evolution of a very massive star
    1. Production of heavy nuclei (including significance of formation of iron-56)
    2. Core collapse, rebound, shockwave restart and supernova
    3. Neutron degeneracy
    4. Neutron stars and pulsars
    5. Black holes

Exam 2 Sample Questions

To help you prepare for the style of questions I often ask, here are a few sample questions to solve:

  1. If the distance between a planet and its moon increased by 3.5 times, what would the resulting gravitational force be?
  2. Sketch a diagram or describe the atmospheric layers of the Sun.
  3. Explain why sunspots are darker than the surrounding photosphere.
  4. What is the triple-alpha process and when does it occur in the life of a star?

Solutions to Sample Questions