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Written by Elvina Lee

As they say in Star Trek, “Space: the final frontier”. How well do you know this big beyond? This week’s quiz will test your familiarity with all things space.

Results

Congratulations! You are a real science whiz!

Oh dear! Better brush up before the next quiz!

#1. What is the most abundant element in the universe?

Hydrogen is the most abundant element in the universe.

#2. Heliocentrism is an astronomical model attributed to Copernicus. Does it mean

Helio– refers to the Sun, while –centrism implies the centre. Hence, heliocentrism is the model in which the Sun is at the centre of the solar system. Earth and the other planets of the solar system revolve around the Sun.

#3. The Square Kilometre Array (SKA) will be primarily hosted by two countries, of which Australia is one. Which other country has been chosen to host the SKA?

South Africa will be the primary host of the high and mid frequency antennas of the SKA, while Australia will host the low frequency antennas.

#4. Prior to sending humans into space, animals were sent into space. Which of these animals was the first to visit space?

Fruit flies were the first animals to visit space. They ventured into space on 20 February 1947, travelling 109 kilometres above sea level and they were successfully recovered alive.

#5. What is the main source of energy for all life on Earth?

The Sun is the main source of energy for all living things on Earth. Energy is harvested from the Sun by plants (and a few other organisms) in a process called photosynthesis. Photosynthetic organisms are then eaten by other organisms and the energy travels up the food chain.

Was I right?

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4 responses

  1. Mark Avatar
    Mark

    Re question 4
    Laika a Dog was the first animal in space.
    Fruit Flies are insectx.

    1. David Avatar
      David

      Hi Mark,
      The term ‘animal’ is a very big one. It includes mammals like dogs and humans, as well as birds, reptiles, frogs, crabs, spiders, insects, jellyfish, coral and pretty much everything that can move.
      Pretty much everything that is bigger than a bacteria, smarter than a fungus and faster than a plant is an animal.
      Laika was the first animal to orbit around the Earth, but not the first to simply go up to space and straight back down again. As well as fruit flies, the Americans sent monkeys to space, and the Soviets sent other dogs well before Laika.

  2. johnny Avatar
    johnny

    well a dog was not the first animal, the first animal was a monkey called albert

  3. David Avatar
    David

    Yup, Albert 2 was the first mammal that went to space, years before Laika went to orbit. But the fruit flies went there even earlier!

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