ASTRONOMY
COURSE 1010
TEST
on UNIT 2: SOLAR SYSTEM
John
P. Pratt
Use
only a Number 2 pencil. If you make a mistake and need to correct it
be sure you erase completely. (Sometimes the scanner is not kind.)
Hint: Avoid "E" as an answer.
The
outermost layer of the earth is the
- core
- crust
- mantle
- asthenosphere
- peeling
The
earth's core is composed primarily of
lead
silicates
copper
nickel-iron
Marine
corps
Sound
waves traveling through the earth are termed _____ waves.
earth
traveling
seismic
magnetic
geologic
tidal
All
processes of fracturing and movement of the Earth's crust are called
__________.
slippage
earthquakes
tectonics
volcanoes
the
earth's crust never moves
With
regard to the tectonic plates of the earth's crust
are
all colliding with each other
are
all separating from each other
some
are separating and some are colliding
none
of these
California
voted to remove San Andreas from sainthood
The
earth's magnetic field is thought to be caused by
a
large loadstone in Northern Canada
sunspot
activity
liquid
metal circulating in the earth's outer core
the
Northern Lights
all
the compasses in the world aligning
A
lunar mare is
a
crack on the surface
a
dark, flat area on the surface
abright
streak radiating from the craters
a
moon mountain
looking
for a lunar stallion
The
lunar craters were apparently caused by
bursting
bubbles from the interior
spacecraft
landings
meteoric
collisions
explosions
Trick
question. The Craters of the Moon are in Idaho.
The
planets Mars through Pluto are called the
Terrestrial
planets
Giant
planets
Outer
planets
Jovian
Planets
Edible
Plants
The
smallest and largest planets (excluding Pluto) are
Mars
and Jupiter
Mercury
and Jupiter
Mercury
and Saturn
Venus
and Jupiter
Stockton
and Malone
The
most slowly rotating planet is
Mars
Mercury
Saturn
Venus
The
Daily Planet
The
hottest planet is
Mercury,
because it is so near the sun
Venus,
because of the "greenhouse" effect
Mars,
because of its large magnetic field
Io,
because of Jupiter's tidal effects
Earth,
because it has the most movie stars
Planets
nearly identical to the earth in certain respects are
Mercury
in rotation rate, Venus in temperature, Mars in size
Mercury
in size, Venus in density, Mars in temperature
Mercury
in temperature, Venus in rotation rate, Mars in size
Mercury
in density, Venus in size, Mars in rotation rate
Mercury
in swiftness, Venus in beauty, Mars in agression
A
planet's synodic period is the period, as seen on the moving earth,
relative to
the
sun
the
moon
the
ecliptic
the
stars
the
asterisk
The
orbital period of Jupiter is
5
times in 8 years
12
years
30
years
84
years
144
years, which is gross
The
planet which would float in water is
Mars
Jupiter
Saturn
Uranus
There's
no bathtub big enough, so there's no way to know
The
first planet to have been predicted to exist because of perturbations
to known planets was
Saturn
Uranus
Neptune
Pluto
Being
perturbed never led to the discovery of anything.
The
planet on which you would weigh the most is
Mars
Jupiter
Saturn
Uranus
You
weigh the same on every planet.
One
planet known to radiate more energy in infrared light than it
receives from the sun is
Mercury,
because it is so near the sun
Venus,
because of the Greenhouse effect
Mars,
because it is so red
Jupiter,
because of gravitational contraction
Infrared
is not light, it is heat
The
moon with the thickest atmosphere is
Titan
Titania
Triton
Ganymede
our
Moon
The
terrestrial planets in order from the Sun are
Mars,
Mercury, Venus, and Earth
Mercury,
Venus, Earth and Mars
Mercury,
Mars, Venus and Earth
Jupiter,
Saturn, Uranus, Neptune and Pluto
Earth
is the only terrestrial planet
Which
is NOT a characteristic of terrestrial planets?
low
density
nearer
the sun than the asteroid belt
at
least some craters
small
diameters
round
like a tennis ball
Which
is NOT a characteristic of the giant planets?
low
density
pronounced
greenhouse effect
they
all have rings
they
have many satellites
they
are named for mythological gods
Craters
on Mercury were discovered by
Galileo,
with one of the first telescopes
large
telescopes in this century
a
space craft fly-by
radar
mapping
there
are no graders on Mercury
Which
is NOT a characteristic of Venus' atmosphere
it
was discovered 200 years ago
it
is composed almost entirely of carbon dioxide
it
is about the same pressure as our atmosphere
it
has clouds containing sulfuric acid
it's
hot enough to fry an egg
The
fact that no object was known at the Bode's rule distance of 2.8 a.u.
led to the discovery of
the
moons of Mars
the
asteroids
the
ring around Jupiter
Neptune
Newton's
laws
Mariner
10 photos of Mercury showed that it looks like
Europa
our
Moon
Venus
Jupiter
Quicksilver
The
planet Mercury
is
easy to see in a very dark sky
can
sometimes be seen rising near the full moon
is
so dim it can only be seen every few years
sometimes
can be seen several times a year
is
impossible to see because it is so near the sun
Because
of its density, Mercury is believed by scientists to
have
an iron core like the earth
be
composed almost entirely of rock like the moon
be
composed of ices, which would float in water
be
composed of crushed asteroids
there
is no reliable indication of Mercury's density
One
planet which is both a morning and evening star is
Venus
Earth
Mars
Jupiter
the
same planet cannot be both the evening and the morning star
The
synodic period of Venus is
about
one third of a year
the
time for it to revolve around the sun
the
time for it to rotate on its axis
such
that 5 cycles of Venus takes 8 earth years
365
days, the same as its "sister planet," earth
The
red color of Mars is caused by
sunlight
being diffracted across the surface
the
plentiful iron oxide (rust) minerals on the surface
the
projection of the red atmosphere onto the planet
the
high rubidium content
blood
from the many battles of Mars
The
large polar "ice cap" on Mars is composed of
mostly
frozen water sometimes covered with dry ice
frozen
carbon tetrachloride
frozen
ammonia and methane
frozen
nitrogen
frozen
yogurt
Which
is NOT true about the search for life on Mars?
there
is evidence that life probably existed anciently when there was water
in the riverbeds
no
biological processes like photosynthesis have been found
the
temperature is warm enough for life
no
indications of microscopic organisms were found
Martians
did not gather at the Viking landing site
Which
is NOT a surface feature of Mars?
volcanoes
larger than any on earth
atmospheric
pressure greater than that on earth
meteorite
craters larger than any on earth
features
resembling ancient riverbeds
a
red sky
The
"canals" on Mars turned out to be
windblown
dust deposits
dry
river beds
extinct
vegetation
huge
impact craters
a
government welfare project
Which
is NOT true of the moons of Mars
they
are named Phobos and Deimos, after the horses that pulled Mars'
chariot
they
are too small to be seen from earth-based telescopes
they
are small enough to be potato-shaped
they
might be captured asteroids
they
are not made of green cheese
Jupiter
is
about
2 times the diameter of the earth
about
5 times the diameter of the earth
about
10 times the diameter of the earth
about
20 times the diameter of the earth
too
big to be seen in a telescope
Jupiter
has
bands
of clouds of ammonia ice
visible
clouds of carbon dioxide
bands
on the rocky surface
visible
clouds of sulfuric acid
bands
of clouds called "zebra stripes"
Jupiter's
red spot is
a
giant impact crater
the
huge basin of a ancient sea
a
huge hurricane larger than the earth
an
example of iron oxide coloration
an
classic example of mass hypnosis
Which
is NOT true of Jupiter's magnetic field?
It
is second in strength only to that of Saturn.
It
contributes to Jupiter's synchrotron radiation in the radio
wavelengths.
It
is probably caused by a liquid metallic hydrogen core.
It
traps charged particles in zones similar to earth's van Allen
belts.
It
has never been known to damage a Mickey Mouse watch.
Jupiter
passes
through about one zodiac constellation per year
is
too dim to see easily from the earth
was
unknown before the early Greek astronomy
has
a retrograde axial rotation
was
known anciently as "Big Jupe"
Which
is NOT true about the four large Galilean satellites of Jupiter
they
can be seen in a small telescope
they
orbit in the same direction as Jupiter and nearly in a plane
they
follow a modified Bode's rule
they
all rotate fairly rapidly on their axes
they
are too big to fit in the Sea of Galilei
The
outer moons of Jupiter
can
all be seen in a small telescope
revolve
in the same direction and nearly in a plane
appear
to have been captured
all
follow a modified Bode's rule
are
located closer to Jupiter than the inner moons.
The
nearest Galilean moon to Jupiter is
Io
Callisto
Europa
Triton
none
of the above; the Galilean moons surround Saturn
The
order of the Galilean satellites in distance from Jupiter is
Io,
Europa, Ganymede and Callisto
Io,
Ganymede, Europa, and Callisto
Europa,
Io, Callisto and Ganymede
Io,
Europa, Callisto and Ganymede
Harpo,
Chico, Zeppo and Groucho
Jupiter
does NOT have at least one moon that
looks
like an icy cue ball
has
sulfur and active volcanoes
is
heated by tidal flexing
has
the thickest atmosphere of any moon in the solar system
is
not overpopulated
Cassini's
division is
a
separation in Saturn's ring visible even in small telescopes
the
division between Jupiter's equatorial and south temperate zone
the
borderline between a dark belt and a light zone
the
outer edge of the Great Red Spot
a
part of the "new math"
All
of the rings around the outer planets are
never
located closer than one planet diameter away from the planet
are
solid discs made of ice and/or rock
are
composed largely of particles and lumps of ice and/or rock
invisible
in small telescopes
known
as the Wedding Rings of the Great Ones
Which
is NOT true of all of the four giants planets?
They
all have rings
They
all have high density
They
all have thick clouds
They
all have at least seven moons
They
all are named for mythological gods
In
what does Saturn differ most from Jupiter?
size
composition
rings
rotation
rate
they
are essentially identical, being known as the Twinners
Saturn
has
a magnificent ring visible only in large telescopes
takes
about 30 years to revolve around the sun
is
visible only shortly after sunset or before sunrise
has
one side always facing Jupiter
will
never be popular enough to have a car named for it
Saturn's
ring is composed of
solid
rock
solid
ice
rock
chunks
ice
chunks
white
gold
The
gap in Saturn's rings is caused by
tidal
forces
being
swept clean by a satellite with twice the orbital period of anything
in the gap
the
continual passing of the planet Jupiter
continual
meteorite bombardment
failure
to use a ring-removing detergent
Titan
is known for
being
the largest moon in the solar system
having
a thick, smoggy atmosphere
being
the icy cue-ball moon
its
liquid nitrogen geysers
having
been sunk by an iceberg
Which
is NOT a characteristic of BOTH Uranus and Neptune?
grey
colored
thick
atmospheres
composed
mostly of hydrogen and helium
rings
bigger
than the U.S.A.
Uranus
was
discovered by Herschel when making a star map
was
predicted to exist by Herschel and then discovered
was
first discovered to have rings on the Voyager flyby
had
all of its moons discovered by earth-based telescopes
has
won the Euphonius Planet Name award
Uranus
can
never be seen in binoculars
has
similar seasons to the earth
has
its equator tipped nearly perpendicular to the orbital plane
is
really an escaped moon of Neptune
always
carries a pitchfork
Uranus
orbits
the sun in 12 years
orbits
the sun in 30 years
orbits
the sun in 84 years
orbits
the sun in 164 years
orbits
the sun whenever it feels like it
The
satellites of Uranus
Are
uninteresting to scientists because they are cold and dead
Were
found by Voyager to be volcanic
Show
fractures and resurfacing
are
only five in number
are
called the Frozen Chosen
Pluto
only
appears as a dot in backyard telescopes
has
an orbit in the plane of the ecliptic
has
a moon about half its own diameter
has
enough mass to cause the perturbations to the orbit of Neptune which
led to its discovery
was
always a little jealous of Goofy
Which
is NOT a reason to reject Pluto is as a true planet
it
is too far from the sun
if
it is called a planet, then Chiron should be also
it
is too small
it
disobeys Bode's rule
it
should be disqualified because nine is not a lucky number
Comets
are believed to be made of
ice
mixed with dark carbonaceous-rich dust grains, like "dirty
icebergs"
mostly
solid methane and ammonia
metallic
hydrogen
rock
scouring
detergent
Comet
tails
point
backward from the direction of orbital motion
point
away from the sun
point
toward the planet Jupiter
point
toward the sun
point
up when happy, and are dragging when sad
Edmond
Halley successfully first predicted the return of Halley's comet
because
perturbations
were discovered in the orbit of Uranus
perturbations
were discovered in the orbit of Neptune
observations
of four previous comets were all separated by the same interval of
time
Sir
Isaac Newton convinced him to use Kepler's laws
he
thought it would help him control the destiny of nations
An
average comet nucleus is about the size of
the
Earth
the
United States
Utah
Orem
and Provo
a
dirty ice skater
An
average meteor is about the size of
Mt.
Timpanogos
the
Utah State Capitol building
a
Toyota
a
grain of sand or matchhead
one
yard (one meteor = 39.37 inches)
Meteor
showers near the same date every year occur when
the
earth passes through the asteroid belt
the
earth passes through the zodiacal light
the
earth passes through tiny fragments of an old comet
the
earth passes Mars in its orbit
the
dirty iceberg needs a shower
The
best meteor shower every year is usually occurs on
March
21
June
21
August
12
December
25
a
snowy day
Meteors
differ from meteorites in that
95%
of meteors are composed of stone
meteorites
hit the ground
meteorites
are much smaller
meteorites
streak across the sky faster
meteorites
are descendants of the Great Meteor
The
two main kinds of meteorites are
iron
and stone
ice
and stone
crystal
and stone
dirt
and ice
all
meteorites were created equal
Asteroids
were discovered
by
using Bode's rule
when
Herschel was making a star map
from
perturbations of planetary orbits
by
accident
by
John Jacob Aster
The
asteroids are mostly found between
Venus
and Earth
Earth
and Mars
Mars
and Jupiter
Jupiter
and Saturn
a
rock and a hard place
No
asteroid has been discovered larger than
a
meteor
a
comet
Utah
our
moon
the
National Debt
Asteroids
are composed of
rock
ice
iron
dust
grains
interstellar
dirt fill
Apollo
asteroids
were
discovered by the Apollo spacecraft
were
worshipped by the early Greeks
come
within the earth's orbit
follow
the sun
are
appalling
A
good scientific theory of the solar system's origin does NOT need to
explain
why
the planets all lie nearly in a plane
the
nearly circular, orbits of the planets, which all go in the same
west-to-east direction
Planet-satellite
systems like miniature solar systems
the
extinction of the dinosaurs by an asteroid
the
origin of anything smaller than Texas
One
weakness in the current theory that the sun and planets apparently
formed at the same time from a contracting cloud is
Why
would the planets all revolve in the same direction in the plane of
the sun's equator?
How
could floating dust and grains form into the asteroids?
Why
would Jupiter and Saturn would have compositions much like the sun?
Why
do the planets rotate on their axes in the same direction they orbit
the sun?
Where
did God get the idea in the first place?