PH109 Exploring the Universe, Test 2, Spring, 1999
PH109 Exploring the Universe, Test 2, Spring, 1999
NAME______
Please indicate the best answer to the following questions on the answer sheet provided. Please answer the essay questions on your copy of the test.
1. The orbital planes of the planets in the solar system are
a) randomly orientated, b) each inclined by 10 degrees more than the previous one
c) all lie in the same plane, d) constantly change
2. Compared to other planets, the largest planets in the solar system have a:
a) greater density, b) lesser density, c) same density, d) random density
3. The orbital planes of comets in the solar system are
a) randomly orientated, b) the same as Jupiter's
c) all lie in the same plane, d) change with the seasons
4. The light given off by a comet:
a) is reflected sunlight,
b) is caused by chemical reactions set in place by the intense sunlight
c) due to nuclear energy from the comet's nucleus
d) due to frictional forces in the Earth's atmosphere
5. Meteor showers are probably produced from:
a) meteor thunderstorms,
b) pockets of randomly placed space dust,
c) random debris left over from solar system formation,
d) left over dust debris from comet tails
6. The asteroid belt was probably formed by;
a) material still being drawn into our solar system
b) the breakup of a small planet
c) the result of two small planets colliding
d) material which didn't get organized enough to make a planet
7. Where are most asteroids found?
a) randomly through out the solar system
b) between the orbits of Earth and Mars
c) between the orbits of Mars and Jupiter
d) in the same regions as comets are found
8. About how many Earth diameters is the Moon's orbit from the Earth.
a) 10, b) 20, c) 30, d) 40
9. How many high and low tides does a position on the Earth experience during a day.
a) 1, b) 2, c) 3, d) 4
10. The Cobb family wants to go to the beach during the highest of tides. When should they go?
a) during the first of the month, b) during new Moon phase,
c) during quarter Moon phase, d) anytime is the same
11. Where on the Earth would you go to have the least intense tides?
a) North or South Poles, b) equator,
c) +/- 45 degrees latitude, d) +/- 35 degrees latitude
12. What is the most abundant constitute in the Earth's atmosphere
a) Oxygen, b) CO2, c) Hydrogen, d) Nitrogen
13. What is the most abundant constitute in the planet Venus' atmosphere
a) Oxygen, b) C2O, c) Hydrogen, d) Nitrogen
14. About how much warmer is the Earth because of the greenhouse effect?
a) 1 degree, b) 10 degrees, c) 30 degrees, d) 40 degrees
15. Why doesn't the Moon have an atmosphere?
a) no volcanoes to produce water vapor, b) no living organisms
c) gravity too weak to hold one, d) Earth's gravity pulls the gasses off the Moon
16. How do we know the Maria (lowlands) on the Moon are younger than the highlands
a) carbon 14 dating, b) radioactive decay rates, c) different color, d) fewer craters
17. Most of the craters on the Moon were caused by
a) volcanoes, b) impacts, c) plate tectonics, d) uneven cooling
18. How do we know the Earth has a liquid core?
a) it sloshes around when the Earth rotates,
b) only compression waves make it through,
c) we have drilled down and sampled some,
d) we can see it at the bottom of some oceans
19. About how much do the continents drift around in one year?
a) 2 cm, b) 1 km, c) 1 mm, d) 1 mile
20. Which is the current best theory that explains the origin of the Moon
a) capture theory, b) fission theory, c) coformation theory, d) impact theory
21. When charged particles are channeled by the Earth's magnetic fields so they penetrate the Earth's atmosphere we witness:
a) meteors, b) comets, c) aurora, d) eclipse
22. Why does the same side on the Moon always face the Earth?
a) it formed that way, b) tides, c) it use to touch the Earth, d) UFO bases are on the other side
23. If the Moon had oceans, how many high and low tides would be experienced in a day
a) none, b) one, c) two, d) 27
24. Which of the terrestrial planets are geologically dead
a) Mercury and Venus, b) Mars and Venus, c) Mars and Mercury, d) Mars and Earth
25. Which is longer, Mercury's day or year
a) day, b) year, c) they are the same, d) constantly changes
26. Which of the terrestrial planets is closest to Earth's mass
a) mercury, b) Venus, c) Mars
27. Which of the terrestrial planets is closest to Earth's length of day
a) mercury, b) Venus, c) Mars
28. Which of the terrestrial planet show no signs of volcanoes past or present
a) Mercury, b) Venus, c) Earth, d) Mars
29. Which of the terrestrial planet has the largest volcanoes
a) Mercury, b) Venus, c) Earth, d) Mars
30. Which of the terrestrial planets has evidence of past flowing water
a) Mercury, b) Venus, c) none, d) Mars
31. Why is Venus so hot?
a) close to the Sun, b) still has molten lava core,
c) chemical reactions in its atmosphere, d) greenhouse effect
32.Which of the following planets deviates most from the temperature it would have if it were in thermal equilibrium with the radiation form the Sun?
a) Mercury, b)Mars, c)Venus, d)Earth
33. Based on current scientific evidence, how old do we think the Earth is
a) 4.6 thousand years, b) 4.6 million years
c) 4.6 billion years, d) 4.6 trillion years
34. What causes the bright flash of light as a meteor plunges through the atmosphere?
a) The meteor glows white hot., b) Lightning sparked by the meteor's passage.
c) Air molecules ionized by the friction of the meteor's passage.
d) All of the above., e) None of the above.
35. Mercury's surface resembles that of what other world?
a) Earth., b) The Moon., c) Mars., d) Venus.
36 Why is one hemisphere of Mars believed to be older than the other?
a) One hemisphere is darker., b) One hemisphere is more heavily cratered.
c) One hemisphere is lower., d) One hemisphere leans more away from the Sun.
37. Why does Mars have seasons?
a) Its orbit is circular.
b) It rotates only a few times during each orbit around the Sun.
c) Mars has a very elliptical orbit that brings it very close to the Sun during summer and far from the Sun during winter.
d) Its axis is tilted relative to its orbital plane.
38. The Solid Earth also under goes tides whose magnitude is about
a) 20 cm, b) 200 cm, c) 20 m, d) 200 m
39. Why do you weigh less on the Moon than you do on the Earth?
a) the Moon is further away from the Sun
b) the tidal force of the Earth on the Moon reduces your weight
c) the Moon has no atmosphere
d) the Moon has less mass
40. What are the clouds of Venus made of
a) water, b) CO2, c) sulfuric acid, d) dust
41. (10 points) Describe in general how the solar system was formed including the planets, comets, and asteroids.
42. (10 points) Explain what the greenhouse effect is and state what kind(s) of gasses are involved.