DO YOU KNOW WHAT'S OUT THERE? 

Space ... a cold mysterious blackboard upon which many a story is written. The eye looks up; the imagination soars. 

New worlds appear, as believable as the one outside our windows. Life forms emerge, as tangible as the members of our family. All that we know here on Earth is temporarily suspended while we wander the boundless sky.  

Well, almost everything.  

No matter where you go in the vast unknown, or how fast you get there, you can't escape one fact—your readers remain human beings. Not only do they want to see a few of their kind in your world, they want to know they can still relate to them.  

Before you launch into another universe, find out how well you know the one you're leaving. Fill in the blanks below.

1.  In space, where there is no air, _______ has no way to travel.

2.  A ______ is an enormous collection of a few million to trillions of stars, gas, and dust held together by gravity. 

3.  The closest star to the Earth is _____.

4.  Craters on the moon were made by __________.

5.  Our galaxy is named the _____  ______.

6.  Earth is the only planet in our solar system with  _____  _____ on its surface.

7.  Most asteroids orbit the sun in the area between ______ and ______, called the "Asteroid Belt."

8.  A black hole is made by ___________.

9.  The bluer the star, the _______ it is.

10.  Our solar system is in a spiral arm called the _____ ____.

11.  ________ is the most abundant element in the universe. 

12.  An astronaut's height can be up to 2 inches _______ when he returns from space.

1.   In space, where there is no air, sound has no way to travel.

2.  A galaxy is an enormous collection of a few million to trillions of stars, gas and dust held together by gravity. 

3.  The closest star to the Earth is the Sun.

4.  Craters on the moon were made by space rock hitting its surface.

5.  Our galaxy is named the Milky Way.

6.  Earth is the only planet in our solar system with liquid water on its surface.

7.  Most asteroids orbit the Sun in the area between Mars and Jupiter, called the "Asteroid Belt."

8.  A black hole is made by a collapsed star.

9.  The bluer the star, the hotter it is. 

10.  Our solar system is in a spiral arm called the Orion Arm.

11.  Hydrogen is the most abundant element in the universe. 

12.  An astronaut's height can be up to 2 inches taller when he returns from space.