Question 1

Which of the following does not lend support to the idea that Pluto is a Kuiper-belt object?

Accepted Answer

A)  Pluto has a cometlike composition and density. 
B)  Pluto is smaller than many known comets, such as Halley's comet. 
C)  Some Kuiper-belt objects have their own moons. 
D)  Pluto has a more eccentric orbit than other planets. 
E)  Some known Kuiper-belt objects are hundreds of kilometers across. 
A)  Pluto has a cometlike composition and density. 
B)  Pluto is smaller than many known comets, such as Halley's comet. 
C)  Some Kuiper-belt objects have their own moons. 
D)  Pluto has a more eccentric orbit than other planets. 
E)  Some known Kuiper-belt objects are hundreds of kilometers across.

Question 2

What is Eris?

Accepted Answer

A)  An icy object that orbits in the Kuiper belt and is larger than Pluto 
B)  The largest known asteroid 
C)  A moon of Pluto 
D)  An extrasolar planet ejected by another solar system and captured by ours 
A)  An icy object that orbits in the Kuiper belt and is larger than Pluto 
B)  The largest known asteroid 
C)  A moon of Pluto 
D)  An extrasolar planet ejected by another solar system and captured by ours

Question 3

What do asteroids and comets have in common?

Accepted Answer

A)  Most are unchanged since their formation in the solar nebula. 
B)  They have similar densities. 
C)  They have similar orbital radii. 
D)  They have a similar range of orbital inclinations. 
E)  They have nothing in common with each other. 
A)  Most are unchanged since their formation in the solar nebula. 
B)  They have similar densities. 
C)  They have similar orbital radii. 
D)  They have a similar range of orbital inclinations. 
E)  They have nothing in common with each other.

Question 4

Describe the Deep Impact and Stardust missions and what they were designed to achieve.

Accepted Answer

The Deep Impact mission sent an impactor

Question 5

A typical shooting star in a meteor shower is caused by a ________ entering Earth's atmosphere.

Accepted Answer

A)  boulder-size particle from an asteroid 
B)  boulder-size particle from a comet 
C)  pea-size particle from an asteroid 
D)  pea-size particle from a comet 
E)  microscopic particle of interstellar dust 
A)  boulder-size particle from an asteroid 
B)  boulder-size particle from a comet 
C)  pea-size particle from an asteroid 
D)  pea-size particle from a comet 
E)  microscopic particle of interstellar dust

Question 6

The total number of comets orbiting the Sun is estimated to be about ________.

Accepted Answer

A)  1 trillion 
B)  1,000 
C)  100,000 
D)  1 million 
A)  1 trillion 
B)  1,000 
C)  100,000 
D)  1 million

Question 7

No spacecraft has ever visited an asteroid or comet.

Accepted Answer

A) True 
 B)False

Question 8

How was Pluto's surface mapped?

Accepted Answer

A)  By imaging with powerful ground based telescopes. 
B)  By imaging with the Hubble Space Telescope. 
C)  By mapping with the New Horizons spacecraft. 
D)  By measuring the change in brightness as Charon eclipsed Pluto. 
E)  Pluto is too far away for its surface to be mapped. 
A)  By imaging with powerful ground based telescopes. 
B)  By imaging with the Hubble Space Telescope. 
C)  By mapping with the New Horizons spacecraft. 
D)  By measuring the change in brightness as Charon eclipsed Pluto. 
E)  Pluto is too far away for its surface to be mapped.

Question 9

Viewed from Pluto, the Sun would appear more than a thousand times fainter than on Earth.

Accepted Answer

A) True 
 B)False

Question 10

Among discovered meteorites, we have found some with all the following origins except ________.

Accepted Answer

A)  being a fragment from Comet Halley 
B)  being a fragment from the surface of Mars 
C)  being a fragment from the surface of the Moon 
D)  being a fragment of a shattered asteroid 
A)  being a fragment from Comet Halley 
B)  being a fragment from the surface of Mars 
C)  being a fragment from the surface of the Moon 
D)  being a fragment of a shattered asteroid

Question 11

Where did comets that are now in the Oort cloud originally form?

Accepted Answer

A)  near the jovian planets 
B)  outside Neptune's orbit 
C)  inside Jupiter's orbit 
D)  within the solar nebula, but far outside the orbit of Pluto 
E)  all of the above 
A)  near the jovian planets 
B)  outside Neptune's orbit 
C)  inside Jupiter's orbit 
D)  within the solar nebula, but far outside the orbit of Pluto 
E)  all of the above

Question 12

The asteroid belt is located ________.

Accepted Answer

A)  between the orbits of Mars and Jupiter 
B)  between the orbits of Earth and Mars 
C)  between the orbits of Jupiter and Saturn 
D)  beyond the orbit of Neptune 
A)  between the orbits of Mars and Jupiter 
B)  between the orbits of Earth and Mars 
C)  between the orbits of Jupiter and Saturn 
D)  beyond the orbit of Neptune

Question 13

What is the name of the largest known Kuiper Belt Object?

Accepted Answer

A)  Pluto 
B)  Charon 
C)  Sedna 
D)  Quaoar 
E)  Eris 
A)  Pluto 
B)  Charon 
C)  Sedna 
D)  Quaoar 
E)  Eris

Question 14

What was the Shoemaker-Levy 9 impact?

Accepted Answer

A)  The 1994 impact of a chain of comet fragments into Jupiter 
B)  The impact thought to have wiped out the dinosaurs 
C)  The impact that created the Moon's largest crater 
D)  The ninth impact witnessed by astronomers in modern times 
A)  The 1994 impact of a chain of comet fragments into Jupiter 
B)  The impact thought to have wiped out the dinosaurs 
C)  The impact that created the Moon's largest crater 
D)  The ninth impact witnessed by astronomers in modern times

Question 15

A typical meteor is created by a particle about the size of a ________.

Accepted Answer

A)  pea 
B)  baseball 
C)  car 
D)  basketball 
A)  pea 
B)  baseball 
C)  car 
D)  basketball

Question 16

Where did comets that are now in the Kuiper belt originally form?

Accepted Answer

A)  in the asteroid belt 
B)  inside Jupiter's orbit 
C)  between the orbits of Jupiter and Neptune 
D)  near the radius at which they orbit today 
E)  in the Oort cloud 
A)  in the asteroid belt 
B)  inside Jupiter's orbit 
C)  between the orbits of Jupiter and Neptune 
D)  near the radius at which they orbit today 
E)  in the Oort cloud

Question 17

Refer to the following choices to answer the questions below. Chose the answer that best describes the chemical composition of the object.
-the atmosphere of Venus

Accepted Answer

A) nickel and iron 
B) 80 percent nitrogen, 20 percent oxygen 
C) 95 percent carbon dioxide 
D) mostly hydrogen and helium 
E) frozen methane, ammonia, water, and other gases and dust 
A) nickel and iron 
B) 80 percent nitrogen, 20 percent oxygen 
C) 95 percent carbon dioxide 
D) mostly hydrogen and helium 
E) frozen methane, ammonia, water, and other gases and dust

Question 18

Refer to the following choices to answer the questions below. Chose the answer that best describes the chemical composition of the object.
-the atmosphere of Mars

Accepted Answer

A) nickel and iron 
B) 80 percent nitrogen, 20 percent oxygen 
C) 95 percent carbon dioxide 
D) mostly hydrogen and helium 
E) frozen methane, ammonia, water, and other gases and dust 
A) nickel and iron 
B) 80 percent nitrogen, 20 percent oxygen 
C) 95 percent carbon dioxide 
D) mostly hydrogen and helium 
E) frozen methane, ammonia, water, and other gases and dust

Which of the following does not lend support to the idea that Pluto is a Kuiper-belt object?

What is Eris?

What do asteroids and comets have in common?

Describe the Deep Impact and Stardust missions and what they were designed to achieve.

A typical shooting star in a meteor shower is caused by a ________ entering Earth's atmosphere.

The total number of comets orbiting the Sun is estimated to be about ________.

No spacecraft has ever visited an asteroid or comet.

How was Pluto's surface mapped?

Viewed from Pluto, the Sun would appear more than a thousand times fainter than on Earth.

Among discovered meteorites, we have found some with all the following origins except ________.

Where did comets that are now in the Oort cloud originally form?

The asteroid belt is located ________.

What is the name of the largest known Kuiper Belt Object?

What was the Shoemaker-Levy 9 impact?

A typical meteor is created by a particle about the size of a ________.

Where did comets that are now in the Kuiper belt originally form?

Refer to the following choices to answer the questions below. Chose the answer that best describes the chemical composition of the object. -the atmosphere of Venus

Refer to the following choices to answer the questions below. Chose the answer that best describes the chemical composition of the object. -the atmosphere of Mars

Our Place in the Universe

Discovering the Universe for Yourself

The Science of Astronomy

Making Sense of the Universe: Understanding Motion, Energy, and Gravity

Light: the Cosmic Messenger

Formation of Planetary Systems: Our Solar System and Beyond

Earth and the Terrestrial Worlds

Jovian Planet Systems

Our Star

Surveying the Stars

Star Stuff

Bizarre Stellar Graveyard

Our Galaxy

Galaxies and the Foundation of Modern Cosmology

Dark Matter, Dark Energy, and the Fate of the Universe

The Beginning of Time

Life in the Universe

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Exam 9: Asteroids, Comets, and Dwarf Planets: Their Nature, Orbits, and Impacts

Which of the following does not lend support to the idea that Pluto is a Kuiper-belt object?

What is Eris?

What do asteroids and comets have in common?

Describe the Deep Impact and Stardust missions and what they were designed to achieve.

A typical shooting star in a meteor shower is caused by a ________ entering Earth's atmosphere.

The total number of comets orbiting the Sun is estimated to be about ________.

No spacecraft has ever visited an asteroid or comet.

How was Pluto's surface mapped?

Viewed from Pluto, the Sun would appear more than a thousand times fainter than on Earth.

Among discovered meteorites, we have found some with all the following origins except ________.

Where did comets that are now in the Oort cloud originally form?

The asteroid belt is located ________.

What is the name of the largest known Kuiper Belt Object?

What was the Shoemaker-Levy 9 impact?

A typical meteor is created by a particle about the size of a ________.

Where did comets that are now in the Kuiper belt originally form?

Refer to the following choices to answer the questions below. Chose the answer that best describes the chemical composition of the object. -the atmosphere of Venus

Refer to the following choices to answer the questions below. Chose the answer that best describes the chemical composition of the object. -the atmosphere of Mars

Our Place in the Universe

Discovering the Universe for Yourself

The Science of Astronomy

Making Sense of the Universe: Understanding Motion, Energy, and Gravity

Light: the Cosmic Messenger

Formation of Planetary Systems: Our Solar System and Beyond

Earth and the Terrestrial Worlds

Jovian Planet Systems

Our Star

Surveying the Stars

Star Stuff

Bizarre Stellar Graveyard

Our Galaxy

Galaxies and the Foundation of Modern Cosmology

Dark Matter, Dark Energy, and the Fate of the Universe

The Beginning of Time

Life in the Universe

Filters