Question 1

If everything in the solar system is moving around, why do the Perseid meteors repeat regularly around August 11th or so?

Accepted Answer

A)  Because the Earth does not move relative to the meteor particles 
B)  Because the Earth in its orbit intersects the same swarm of meteor particles at the same time each year 
C)  Because the Perseids are not in space at all, but in the upper layers of the Earth's atmosphere 
D)  Because August 11th is when the Sun's rays are the warmest, and thus tend to move the meteor particles toward us at the fastest speed 
E)  Only astrologers can explain this regularity; astronomers do not understand it 
A)  Because the Earth does not move relative to the meteor particles 
B)  Because the Earth in its orbit intersects the same swarm of meteor particles at the same time each year 
C)  Because the Perseids are not in space at all, but in the upper layers of the Earth's atmosphere 
D)  Because August 11th is when the Sun's rays are the warmest, and thus tend to move the meteor particles toward us at the fastest speed 
E)  Only astrologers can explain this regularity; astronomers do not understand it

Question 2

How do astronomers know that the age of the solar system is about 4.5 billion years old?

Accepted Answer

A)  radioactive dating of all the rocks on Earth shows that age 
B)  they estimate that age from the number of comets that are still located in the Kuiper Belt 
C)  radioactive dating of the primitive meteorites indicates they have that age (since they are left-over building blocks of the solar system) 
D)  they estimate the date from the number of impact craters on the Earth 
E)  they have the warranty book for each planet, and it tells you when the unit was manufactured 
A)  radioactive dating of all the rocks on Earth shows that age 
B)  they estimate that age from the number of comets that are still located in the Kuiper Belt 
C)  radioactive dating of the primitive meteorites indicates they have that age (since they are left-over building blocks of the solar system) 
D)  they estimate the date from the number of impact craters on the Earth 
E)  they have the warranty book for each planet, and it tells you when the unit was manufactured

Question 3

One of the best proofs that our theory of how the solar system formed is correct is that astronomers now observe

Accepted Answer

A)  Pluto's orbit, which is not in the plane (or disk) that the other planets orbit in 
B)  disks around other stars which show evidence of gaps where planets may be forming 
C)  planets that are called "hot Jupiters" 
D)  no water in the inner solar system 
E)  UFO's with alien astronomy textbooks inside, discussing the same theories 
A)  Pluto's orbit, which is not in the plane (or disk) that the other planets orbit in 
B)  disks around other stars which show evidence of gaps where planets may be forming 
C)  planets that are called "hot Jupiters" 
D)  no water in the inner solar system 
E)  UFO's with alien astronomy textbooks inside, discussing the same theories

Question 4

One of the best ways to learn more about a world is to have samples from its surface to analyze in our laboratories. From which of the following worlds do we NOT yet have a sample to analyze here on Earth?

Accepted Answer

A)  Earth 
B)  the Moon 
C)  Mars 
D)  Venus 
E)  the asteroid Vesta 
A)  Earth 
B)  the Moon 
C)  Mars 
D)  Venus 
E)  the asteroid Vesta

Question 5

Which of the following is not a characteristic that worlds in our solar system have in common:

Accepted Answer

A)  that the planets all revolve around the Sun in the same direction 
B)  that most of the planets spin in the same direction that they revolve 
C)  that many of the larger moons go around their planets in the same direction 
D)  that the planets' orbits lie in roughly the same plane 
E)  that all the planets have solid surfaces on which we can see impact craters 
A)  that the planets all revolve around the Sun in the same direction 
B)  that most of the planets spin in the same direction that they revolve 
C)  that many of the larger moons go around their planets in the same direction 
D)  that the planets' orbits lie in roughly the same plane 
E)  that all the planets have solid surfaces on which we can see impact craters

Question 6

One of the following worlds has an orbit that actually crosses the orbit of another world. This "rude" world is:

Accepted Answer

A)  Pluto's moon Charon 
B)  Pluto 
C)  Uranus 
D)  Venus 
E)  Io 
A)  Pluto's moon Charon 
B)  Pluto 
C)  Uranus 
D)  Venus 
E)  Io

If everything in the solar system is moving around, why do the Perseid meteors repeat regularly around August 11th or so?

How do astronomers know that the age of the solar system is about 4.5 billion years old?

One of the best proofs that our theory of how the solar system formed is correct is that astronomers now observe

One of the best ways to learn more about a world is to have samples from its surface to analyze in our laboratories. From which of the following worlds do we NOT yet have a sample to analyze here on Earth?

Which of the following is not a characteristic that worlds in our solar system have in common:

One of the following worlds has an orbit that actually crosses the orbit of another world. This "rude" world is:

Science and the Universe: a Brief Tour

Observing the Sky: the Birth of Astronomy

Orbits and Gravity

Earth, Moon, and Sky

Radiation and Spectra

Astronomical Instruments

Other Worlds: an Introduction to the Solar System

Earth As a Planet

Cratered Worlds: the Moon and Mercury

Earthlike Planets: Venus and Mars

The Giant Planets

Rings, Moons, and Pluto

Comets and Asteroids: Debris of the Solar System

The Sun: a Garden-Variety Star

The Sun: a Nuclear Powerhouse

Analyzing Starlight

The Stars: a Celestial Census

Celestial Distances

Between the Stars

The Birth of Stars and the Discovery of Planets Outside the Solar System

Stars From Adolescence to Old Age

The Death of Stars

Black Holes and Curved Space-Time

The Milky Way Galaxy

Galaxies

Active Galaxies, Quasars, and Supermassive Black Holes

The Evolution and Distribution of Galaxies

The Big Bang

Life in the Universe

Filters

Exam 14: Cosmic Samples and the Origin of the Solar System

If everything in the solar system is moving around, why do the Perseid meteors repeat regularly around August 11th or so?

How do astronomers know that the age of the solar system is about 4.5 billion years old?

One of the best proofs that our theory of how the solar system formed is correct is that astronomers now observe

One of the best ways to learn more about a world is to have samples from its surface to analyze in our laboratories. From which of the following worlds do we NOT yet have a sample to analyze here on Earth?

Which of the following is not a characteristic that worlds in our solar system have in common:

One of the following worlds has an orbit that actually crosses the orbit of another world. This "rude" world is:

Science and the Universe: a Brief Tour

Observing the Sky: the Birth of Astronomy

Orbits and Gravity

Earth, Moon, and Sky

Radiation and Spectra

Astronomical Instruments

Other Worlds: an Introduction to the Solar System

Earth As a Planet

Cratered Worlds: the Moon and Mercury

Earthlike Planets: Venus and Mars

The Giant Planets

Rings, Moons, and Pluto

Comets and Asteroids: Debris of the Solar System

The Sun: a Garden-Variety Star

The Sun: a Nuclear Powerhouse

Analyzing Starlight

The Stars: a Celestial Census

Celestial Distances

Between the Stars

The Birth of Stars and the Discovery of Planets Outside the Solar System

Stars From Adolescence to Old Age

The Death of Stars

Black Holes and Curved Space-Time

The Milky Way Galaxy

Galaxies

Active Galaxies, Quasars, and Supermassive Black Holes

The Evolution and Distribution of Galaxies

The Big Bang

Life in the Universe

Filters