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Grade
9
Intro
This assessment covers how the universe began, how stars live and die, and how Earth got its age. Use this guide to review key ideas, practice skills, and check your understanding before test day.
Subject
Science
Practice
Q1. The table below shows data for four stars.
Star
Mass (× Sun)
Estimated Lifespan
W
0.08
~6 trillion years
X
1.2
~8 billion years
Y
5.0
~100 million years
Z
20.0
~5 million years
Which star will most likely end its life in a supernova AND produce the heaviest elements?
Star W, because it has the longest lifespan and the most time to fuse elements
Star X, because it is closest in mass to the Sun and therefore most average
Star Z, because its extremely high mass drives fusion to produce the heaviest elements and ends in a supernova
Star Y, because it is a medium-mass star with a balanced temperature
Q2. Scientists measure the spectrum of light coming from a distant cluster of galaxies and find that all spectral lines are shifted toward longer wavelengths compared to what is measured in a laboratory on Earth. What does this observation most directly tell scientists?
The galaxies are moving toward Earth and compressing their light waves
The galaxies are composed entirely of hydrogen, which always produces long wavelengths
The galaxies are moving away from Earth, stretching their light to longer (redder) wavelengths
The light has been absorbed by dust clouds between Earth and the galaxies
Q3. Before CMBR was discovered, the Big Bang model predicted that faint leftover energy from the early universe should be detectable throughout all of space. When scientists later detected this radiation using radio telescopes, how did this discovery fit the model-prediction-evidence framework?
It served as the model itself, replacing the Big Bang Theory with a new explanation
It was the prediction; scientists had already found the evidence before making any model
It served as evidence, confirming what the Big Bang model had already predicted should exist
It was the reasoning scientists used to decide that the Big Bang was unlikely to have occurred
Standards
ESS 1.2
ESS 1.3
ESS 2.1
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