Question 1

One of the best known craters on Earth is the Barringer Crater in Arizona. It was formed by:

Accepted Answer

A) a large volcanic eruption. 
B) the same impact thought to have contributed to the extinction of the dinosaurs. 
C) the impact of an asteroid whose mass was around 200,000 tons. 
D) testing of nuclear bombs during the Cold War. 
E) the impact of a comet whose mass was around 25 tons. 
A) a large volcanic eruption. 
B) the same impact thought to have contributed to the extinction of the dinosaurs. 
C) the impact of an asteroid whose mass was around 200,000 tons. 
D) testing of nuclear bombs during the Cold War. 
E) the impact of a comet whose mass was around 25 tons.

Question 2

Halley's Comet last passed Earth in 1986. It will be due back in:

Accepted Answer

A) 2012. 
B) 2048. 
C) 2061. 
D) 2086. 
E) the twenty-third century. 
A) 2012. 
B) 2048. 
C) 2061. 
D) 2086. 
E) the twenty-third century.

Question 3

Several objects were called planets when they were originally discovered, but are no longercalled planets.

Accepted Answer

A) True 
 B)False

Question 4

Sedna, with a perihelion three times farther out than Pluto, and a period of thousands ofyears, is just a typical Kuiper Belt body.

Accepted Answer

A) True 
 B)False

Question 5

The two names most associated with the discovery of Pluto are:

Accepted Answer

A) Adams and Leverrier. 
B) Herschel and Bode. 
C) Kuiper and Whipple. 
D) Lowell and Tombaugh. 
E) Shoemaker and Levy. 
A) Adams and Leverrier. 
B) Herschel and Bode. 
C) Kuiper and Whipple. 
D) Lowell and Tombaugh. 
E) Shoemaker and Levy.

Question 6

Rocky debris larger than 100 meters in diameter seen to be orbiting the Sun are called________.

Accepted Answer

The answer of Rocky debris larger than 100 meters in...

Question 7

Iridium was the element that first alerted us to the unusual dust left behind by the K-Tboundary event.

Accepted Answer

A) True 
 B)False

Question 8

Meteor showers are the result of debris left behind by the passage of a decaying comet.

Accepted Answer

A) True 
 B)False

Question 9

Both Ceres and Pluto were originally classified as planets, but are now classified as dwarfplanets.

Accepted Answer

A) True 
 B)False

Question 10

When it was determined that Sedna has a perihelion distance that is three times farther outthan Pluto and such an eccentric orbit that it has a period of thousands of years, it was placed inthe:

Accepted Answer

A) Trojan Asteroids. 
B) Kuiper Belt. 
C) Kirkwood Gap. 
D) Oort Cloud. 
E) Rogue Comets. 
A) Trojan Asteroids. 
B) Kuiper Belt. 
C) Kirkwood Gap. 
D) Oort Cloud. 
E) Rogue Comets.

Question 11

What are comets made of?

Accepted Answer

A) silicates and rocky dust 
B) metallic dust particles 
C) dark colored complex hydrocarbons 
D) methane, ammonia, and water ice 
E) all of the above 
A) silicates and rocky dust 
B) metallic dust particles 
C) dark colored complex hydrocarbons 
D) methane, ammonia, and water ice 
E) all of the above

Question 12

What is the typical size of most known asteroids?

Accepted Answer

A) a few meters 
B) a few kilometers 
C) a few hundred kilometers 
D) larger than the Moon 
E) larger than the Earth 
A) a few meters 
B) a few kilometers 
C) a few hundred kilometers 
D) larger than the Moon 
E) larger than the Earth

Question 13

What are the Aten asteroids?

Accepted Answer

Asteroids staying very close t

Question 14

Pluto is smaller than many moons in the solar system.

Accepted Answer

A) True 
 B)False

Question 15

Typically, no more than a couple dozen potentially hazardous asteroids approach the Earth asclose as 0.05 A.U. each decade.

Accepted Answer

A) True 
 B)False

Question 16

The Perseid meteor shower gives us about a meteor every minute in mid:

Accepted Answer

A) January. 
B) May. 
C) August. 
D) October. 
E) November. 
A) January. 
B) May. 
C) August. 
D) October. 
E) November.

Question 17

The K-T Boundary Event happened about 65 million years ago when an asteroid the size ofDeimos struck the ________ Peninsula.

Accepted Answer

The answer of The K-T Boundary Event happened about 65...

Question 18

Contrast the Oort Cloud and the Kuiper Belt.

Accepted Answer

In the Oort Cloud comets have orbits up

Question 19

Pluto has 5 known moons: Charon, Hydra, Nix, Kerberos and Styx.

Accepted Answer

A) True 
 B)False

Question 20

Most asteroids are differentiated, as reflected by their spherical shapes.

Accepted Answer

A) True 
 B)False

Exam 14: Solar System Debris: Keys to Our Origin

One of the best known craters on Earth is the Barringer Crater in Arizona. It was formed by:

Halley's Comet last passed Earth in 1986. It will be due back in:

Several objects were called planets when they were originally discovered, but are no longercalled planets.

Sedna, with a perihelion three times farther out than Pluto, and a period of thousands ofyears, is just a typical Kuiper Belt body.

The two names most associated with the discovery of Pluto are:

Rocky debris larger than 100 meters in diameter seen to be orbiting the Sun are called________.

Iridium was the element that first alerted us to the unusual dust left behind by the K-Tboundary event.

Meteor showers are the result of debris left behind by the passage of a decaying comet.

Both Ceres and Pluto were originally classified as planets, but are now classified as dwarfplanets.

When it was determined that Sedna has a perihelion distance that is three times farther outthan Pluto and such an eccentric orbit that it has a period of thousands of years, it was placed inthe:

What are comets made of?

What is the typical size of most known asteroids?

What are the Aten asteroids?

Pluto is smaller than many moons in the solar system.

Typically, no more than a couple dozen potentially hazardous asteroids approach the Earth asclose as 0.05 A.U. each decade.

The Perseid meteor shower gives us about a meteor every minute in mid:

The K-T Boundary Event happened about 65 million years ago when an asteroid the size ofDeimos struck the ________ Peninsula.

Contrast the Oort Cloud and the Kuiper Belt.

Pluto has 5 known moons: Charon, Hydra, Nix, Kerberos and Styx.

Most asteroids are differentiated, as reflected by their spherical shapes.

Charting the Heavens: The Foundations of Astronomy

The Copernican Revolution: The Birth of Modern Science

Radiation: Information From the Cosmos

Spectroscopy: the Inner Workings of Atoms

Telescopes: The Tools of Astronomy

The Solar System: Comparative Planetology and Formation Models

Earth: Our Home in Space

The Moon and Mercury: Scorched and Battered Worlds

Venus: Earths Sister Planet

Mars: a Near Miss for Life

Jupiter: Giant of the Solar System

Saturn: Spectacular Rings and Mysterious Moons

Uranus and Neptune: The Outer Worlds of the Solar System

Exoplanets: Planetary Systems Beyond Our Own

The Sun: Our Parent Star

The Stars: Giants, Dwarfs, and the Main Sequence

The Interstellar Medium: Gas and Dust Among the Stars

Star Formation: a Traumatic Birth

Stellar Evolution: The Life and Death of a Star

Stellar Explosions: Novae, Supernovae, and the Formation of the Elements

Neutron Stars and Black Holes: Strange States of Matter

The Milky Way Galaxy: a Spiral in Space

Galaxies: Building Blocks of the Universe

Galaxies and Dark Matter: The Large-Scale Structure of the Cosmos

Cosmology: The Big Bang and the Fate of the Universe

The Early Universe: Toward the Beginning of Time

Life in the Universe: Are We Alone

Filters