ASPIRE Reading Expository Review

Which of the following statements best expresses the main idea of the passage?

• Bailin began studying the Sagittarius Dwarf when he was a graduate student in astronomy.

• The gravitational tidal forces of the Milky Way are destroying the Sagittarius Dwarf.

• Most astronomers have come to an agreement that evidence about how galaxies have formed is, at best, circumstantial.

• Evidence suggests that the warp in the Milky Way's disk results from the Milky Way's interaction with a small satellite galaxy.

Tags

CCSS.RI. 9-10.2

CCSS.RI.7.2

CCSS.RI.8.2

CCSS.RL.8.2

CCSS.RL.9-10.2

It can reasonably be inferred that the problem the author mentions in th lin 33 refrs to:

• a particular aspect of Bailin's theory for which there is little evidence.

• a mathematical computation that led Bailin to focus on the Sagittarius Dwarf.

• the question of which physical processes caused the warp in the Milky Way.

• the potential impact of wobbly gyrations on the Milky Way's rotation.

Tags

CCSS.RI. 9-10.1

CCSS.RI.7.1

CCSS.RI.8.1

CCSS.RL.8.1

CCSS.RL.9-10.2

It can reasonably be inferred from the passage that the small satellite galaxy referred to in lines 35-36 is:

• the Small Magellanic Cloud.

• the Sagittarius Dwarf.

• a known but as yet unnamed galaxy.

• a hypothetical galaxy that is believed to exist but has not yet been found.

Tags

CCSS.RI. 9-10.1

CCSS.RI.8.1

CCSS.RL.11-12.2

CCSS.RL.8.1

CCSS.RL.9-10.2

Based on the passage, which of the following statements best describes Bailin's study as it relates to the field of astronomy?

• It led astronomers to the discovery of a warp in the Milky Way's disk.

• It convinced more astronomers to focus their attention on the center of the Milky Way.

• It revealed problems with the basic assumptions held by most astronomers.

• It provided evidence for an idea that scientists had long considered a possibility but had not yet proved.

Tags

CCSS.RI. 9-10.2

CCSS.RI.11-12.2

CCSS.RI.8.2

CCSS.RL.8.2

CCSS.RL.9-10.2

According to the passage, Bailin discovered that the angular momentum of the warped portion of the Milky Way and the angular momentum of the Sagittarius Dwarf are:

• identical in quantity but different in direction.

• identical in direction but different in quantity.

• identical in both quantity and direction.

• different in both quantity and direction.

Tags

CCSS.RI. 9-10.2

CCSS.RI.11-12.2

CCSS.RI.8.2

CCSS.RL.8.2

CCSS.RL.9-10.2

According to the passage, the central bulge of the Milky Way is comprised of:

• 80 percent of the galaxy's stars.

• older stars and a black hole.

• a glactic plane and several dwarf planets.

• a loose agglomeration of unidentified matter.

Tags

CCSS.RI. 9-10.2

CCSS.RI.8.2

CCSS.RL.7.2

CCSS.RL.8.2

CCSS.RL.9-10.2

The author refers to the swirling pattern of a hurricane primarily in order to:

• help explain the shortcomings of the plum-and-pizza metaphor.

• argue that the unpredictability of the rotation of spiral galaxies requires a new metaphor.

• emphasize the particular aspects of the Milky Way that make it unique.

• describe how the movement of the Milky Way creates gravitational tides.

The passage directly compares the Milky Way's disk as it is affected by its warp to:

• a pasta maker churning out spaghetti.

• piza dough being spun in the air by a chef.

• a thin-crust pizza balanced on top of a plum.

• two figure skaters coming together for a combination spin.

Tags

CCSS.RI.11-12.5

CCSS.RI.6.5

CCSS.RI.7.5

CCSS.RI.8.5

CCSS.RI.9-10.5

According to the passage, which of the following statements best describes the movement of the Sagittarius Dwarf with respect to the Milky Way?

• It appears to be in a roughly polar orbit around the Milky Way.

• It appears to orbit the Milky Way at an angle of roughly forty-five degrees.

• It follows the movement of the stars in the Milky Way's disk, though at a slightly faster rate.

• It once followed the movement of the stars in the Milky Way's disk, but now seems to move erratically along its own path.

Tags

CCSS.RI. 9-10.2

CCSS.RI.8.2

CCSS.RL.7.2

CCSS.RL.8.2

CCSS.RL.9-10.2

The passage describes angular momentum as the amout of a system's:

• vertical deviation within an orbital path.

• movement in a straight line through space.

• gravitational pull.

• spin or rotation.

Tags

CCSS.RI. 9-10.2

CCSS.RI.7.2

CCSS.RI.8.2

CCSS.RL.8.2

CCSS.RL.9-10.2