THE SOUTHWORTH PLANETARIUM
70 Falmouth Street Portland, Maine 04103
43.6667° N 70.2667° W
Altitude: 10 feet below sea level
Founded January 1970
Julian Date: 2458831.16
2019-2020: LXXI
"The cannibal was so late for dinner the host gave him the cold shoulder."
THE DAILY ASTRONOMER
Friday, December 13, 2019
Quiz XV: Mythology PhD
HEY!
You can earn your PhD in just a few minutes merely by passing this test!
(Being the proud holder of 11 PhD's, I can assure you that earning such a distinction can prove to be a life changing event.) We've focused solely on the Greco-Roman mythological traditions as those are the basis of our constellations. We're going to adopt the quiz format popularized by the late -and now deified- Isaac Asimov: dividing the questions into three categories according to difficulty. Pass the first part and you'll have a BA (no, it's not a BS) in mythology; pass the second part, you'll earn a masters and if you pass all three you can boast to your friends that you have a "Mythology PhD." (Let us know what smart remark they make in response.)
Bachelor's Level:
[Fill in the Blank]
1. The famous "belt" is part of the constellation ________________.
a. Ophiuchus
b. Hercules
c. Orion
d. Pegasus
2. The "Big Dipper" is part of the constellation________________.
a. Ursa Major
b. Ursa Minor
c. Cassiopeia
d. Draco the Dragon
3. Cancer, the __________ contains
the __________ Star Cluster.
a. Crab; Beehive
b. Dolphin; Orange
c. Whale; Pixie
d. Crow; Hercules
4. Castor and Pollux are __________________.
a. the Gemini twins
b. the brothers of Helen of Troy
c. twin brothers, but half brothers
d. all of the above.
5. In the sky, Taurus the ___________ protects the
____________ from _____________.
a. Peacock; celestial flowers; Ophiuchus
b. Bull; Pleiades; Orion
c. Charioteer; mermaids; the sharks
d. Matador; audience; the Bull
Master's Degree Level
6. Cassiopeia was the queen of which country?
a. Greece
b. Thrace
c. Ethiopia
d. Mesopotamia
7. Who is called "the kneeling one?"
a. Vulpecula
b. Ophiuchus
c. Aries
d. Hercules
e. Cepheus
8. Sirius, the brightest star in the night sky, marks
the ___________ of ______________.
a. throat; Canis Minor
b. throat; Canes Venatici
c. throat; Canis Major
d. nose; Canes Venatici
e. collar; Canis Minor
9. Corona Borealis, "the Northern Crown," represents the diadem
worn by whom?
a. Ariadne, who married Bacchus after Theseus abandoned her. Bacchus fashioned this crown
of stars for her as a token of his devotion.
b. Hera, scorned wife of Zeus who wore an invisibility crown to spy on her husband
c. Helen of Troy, to whom Paris gave a valuable crown after her abduction
d. Aurora, who dons the crown whenever light appears in the east
10. _________________, the flying horse was born out of the blood of
_______________ and eventually tamed by ____________________.
a. Voldipox; Apollo; Mercury
b. Pegasus; Medusa; Bellophoron
c. Pegasus; Medusa; Patheon
d. Pegasus; Sibyl; Athena
PhD Level
11. Star names that begin with "Al" are likely
to be Arabic in origin, because "Al" is the Arabic word for
a. star
b. light
c. the
d. man
e. creature
f. world
12. Aries the Ram once marked the point of the Vernal Equinox.
The Equinox point is now in the constellation _________________.
a. Aquarius
b. Pisces
c. Aries the Ram (the equinox point doesn't move)
d. Sagittarius
e. Taurus
13. Which two constellations appear to ride on Hydra the water snake?
a. Delphinus and Capricornus
b. Aquarius and Capricornus
c. Corvus and Crater
d. Delphinus and Corvus
e. Aquila and Lyra
f. Serpens and Perseus
g. Capricornus and Eridanus
Bachelor's Degree Level Answers
1. c. Orion
Orion's belt is one of the night sky's most famous asterism. A diagonal arrangement of three stars(Alnitak, Alnilam, Mintaka), Orion's belt is nearly in the constellation's center
2. a. Ursa Major
Ursa Major is the Great Bear. The Big Dipper's bowl marks the bear's stomach. The handle marks its tail.
3. a. Crab; Beehive
4. d. all of the above.
Yes, Castor and Pollux are the Gemini twins. They are Helen of Troy's brothers. As they had the same efficient mother, but different fathers, they are twin half-brothers.
5. b. Bull; Pleiades; Orion
Taurus the Bull stands between Orion the Hunter and the Pleiades Sisters.
Master's Degree Level answers
6. c. Ethiopia
Cetus ravaged the Ethiopian coast after Cassiopeia bragged that her daughter was more beautiful than Posideon's sea nymphs.
7. d. Hercules
Hercules is called the kneeling one because he is depicted kneeling on Draco the Dragon's head.
8. c. throat; Canis Major
Sirius is the throat in Canis Major, the great dog.
9. a. Ariadne, who married Bacchus after Theseus abandoned her. Bacchus fashioned this crown
of stars for her as a token of his devotion.
10. b. Pegasus; Medusa; Bellophoron
PhD Level answers
11. c. the
Examples: "Aldebaran," (the follower); "Alnitak," (the girdle); "Alnilam" (the belt of pearls)
12. b. Pisces
The Sun occupies Pisces the Fish on the Vernal Equinox (first day of Spring.) Precession of the Equinoxes shifts all the seasonal points along the ecliptic by one degree every 73 years (on average).
13. c. Corvus and Crater
Corvus the Crow; Crater the Cup