Question 1

Identify the object in the picture below.

Accepted Answer

A) an active comet 
B) a meteor shower 
C) a meteorite 
D) an asteroid 
E) zodiacal dust 
A) an active comet 
B) a meteor shower 
C) a meteorite 
D) an asteroid 
E) zodiacal dust

Question 2

Comets have highly eccentric orbits,with eccentricities of 0.95−0.99 being common.Suppose a certain comet has an eccentricity of 0.99.If the semimajor axis of its orbit is 2,500 AU,what will be its distance at perihelion and at aphelion? Is this most likely a Kuiper Belt object or an Oort Cloud comet? (Note: For an ellipse,a(1 + e)is the distance from one focus to the farther edge of the long axis and a(1 − e)is the distance from the same focus to the closer edge of the long axis. )

Accepted Answer

Aphelion is the point of farthest approa

Question 3

Eris,Ceres,and Haumea are examples of:

Accepted Answer

A) asteroids 
B) dwarf planets 
C) meteoroids 
D) comets 
E) meteor showers 
A) asteroids 
B) dwarf planets 
C) meteoroids 
D) comets 
E) meteor showers

Question 4

Meteorites are more likely to come from asteroids than comets.

Accepted Answer

A) True 
 B)False

Question 5

Why does the dust tail separate from the ion tail?

Accepted Answer

A) The dust is not ionized,so it is not affected by the solar wind. 
B) Dust cannot sublimate as ice can,so it cannot form a tail as easily. 
C) The dust tail forms on the leading side of the nucleus,whereas the gas tail forms on the opposite side. 
D) Dust particles are more massive than ions,so their accelerations are less. 
E) The dust tail has the opposite charge as the ion tail. 
A) The dust is not ionized,so it is not affected by the solar wind. 
B) Dust cannot sublimate as ice can,so it cannot form a tail as easily. 
C) The dust tail forms on the leading side of the nucleus,whereas the gas tail forms on the opposite side. 
D) Dust particles are more massive than ions,so their accelerations are less. 
E) The dust tail has the opposite charge as the ion tail.

Question 6

Most asteroids are located between the orbits of:

Accepted Answer

A) Earth and Mars 
B) Mars and Jupiter 
C) Jupiter and Saturn 
D) Neptune and Pluto 
E) the Kuiper Belt and the Oort Cloud 
A) Earth and Mars 
B) Mars and Jupiter 
C) Jupiter and Saturn 
D) Neptune and Pluto 
E) the Kuiper Belt and the Oort Cloud

Question 7

Like meteoroids and asteroids,cometary nuclei in the Oort Cloud undergo frequent collisions that often send them into the inner Solar System.

Accepted Answer

A) True 
 B)False

Question 8

Assume the larger circle shown below is the Sun,and the smaller circle is the head of a comet.If the comet is moving AWAY from the Sun,draw and label the two tails onto the comet.

Accepted Answer

Both tails should be pointing

Question 9

Which of the following likely helps replenish the zodiacal dust in the vicinity of Earth the most?

Accepted Answer

A) comets 
B) asteroids 
C) the Moon 
D) volcanoes on Earth 
E) tornados on Earth 
A) comets 
B) asteroids 
C) the Moon 
D) volcanoes on Earth 
E) tornados on Earth

Question 10

Which of the following types of Solar System debris were NOT discovered until the age of telescopes?

Accepted Answer

A) comets 
B) meteoroids 
C) zodiacal dust 
D) asteroids 
E) all of the above 
A) comets 
B) meteoroids 
C) zodiacal dust 
D) asteroids 
E) all of the above

Question 11

Antarctica is the best hunting ground for meteorites for all of the following reasons EXCEPT:

Accepted Answer

A) the ground is covered with ice 
B) more meteorites fall there than on other locations on Earth 
C) few native rocks are found on the glaciers 
D) meteorites are protected from weathering and contamination there 
E) by searching at different depths in the ice you can determine the history of impacts over time 
A) the ground is covered with ice 
B) more meteorites fall there than on other locations on Earth 
C) few native rocks are found on the glaciers 
D) meteorites are protected from weathering and contamination there 
E) by searching at different depths in the ice you can determine the history of impacts over time

Question 12

Pluto has a density that is roughly equal to two times that of:

Accepted Answer

A) a feather 
B) water 
C) lead 
D) a rock 
E) air 
A) a feather 
B) water 
C) lead 
D) a rock 
E) air

Question 13

Pluto is composed primarily of rock.

Accepted Answer

A) True 
 B)False

Question 14

Meteor showers appear as if they are coming from one particular place in the sky because:

Accepted Answer

A) that is the direction in which the comet is coming toward us 
B) that is the direction in which the comet is moving away from us 
C) that is the direction toward which Earth is traveling 
D) that is the direction Earth just passed 
E) that is the location in the sky from which the meteors originate 
A) that is the direction in which the comet is coming toward us 
B) that is the direction in which the comet is moving away from us 
C) that is the direction toward which Earth is traveling 
D) that is the direction Earth just passed 
E) that is the location in the sky from which the meteors originate

Question 15

Identify the object in the picture below.

Accepted Answer

A) an active comet 
B) a meteor shower 
C) a meteorite 
D) an asteroid 
E) zodiacal dust 
A) an active comet 
B) a meteor shower 
C) a meteorite 
D) an asteroid 
E) zodiacal dust

Question 16

Most asteroids are found in orbit around the Sun between the orbits of Jupiter and Saturn.

Accepted Answer

A) True 
 B)False

Question 17

A comet having an orbit of 50 years would likely have come from the:

Accepted Answer

A) Atens family 
B) Oort Cloud 
C) Trojan family 
D) zodiacal zone 
E) Kuiper Belt 
A) Atens family 
B) Oort Cloud 
C) Trojan family 
D) zodiacal zone 
E) Kuiper Belt

Question 18

Meteorites contain clues to all of the following EXCEPT:

Accepted Answer

A) the age of the Solar System 
B) the temperature in the early solar nebula 
C) changes in the rate of cratering in the early Solar System 
D) the composition of the primitive Solar System 
E) the physical processes that controlled the formation of the Solar System 
A) the age of the Solar System 
B) the temperature in the early solar nebula 
C) changes in the rate of cratering in the early Solar System 
D) the composition of the primitive Solar System 
E) the physical processes that controlled the formation of the Solar System

Question 19

What does the existence of M-type asteroids tell us about their origin?

Accepted Answer

They were once the m

Question 20

Identify the object in the picture below.

Accepted Answer

A) a meteor 
B) a chondrite meteorite 
C) an achondrite meteorite 
D) an iron meteorite 
E) an asteroid 
A) a meteor 
B) a chondrite meteorite 
C) an achondrite meteorite 
D) an iron meteorite 
E) an asteroid

Exam 12: Dwarf Planets and Small Solar System Bodies

Identify the object in the picture below.

Eris,Ceres,and Haumea are examples of:

Meteorites are more likely to come from asteroids than comets.

Why does the dust tail separate from the ion tail?

Most asteroids are located between the orbits of:

Like meteoroids and asteroids,cometary nuclei in the Oort Cloud undergo frequent collisions that often send them into the inner Solar System.

Assume the larger circle shown below is the Sun,and the smaller circle is the head of a comet.If the comet is moving AWAY from the Sun,draw and label the two tails onto the comet.

Which of the following likely helps replenish the zodiacal dust in the vicinity of Earth the most?

Which of the following types of Solar System debris were NOT discovered until the age of telescopes?

Antarctica is the best hunting ground for meteorites for all of the following reasons EXCEPT:

Pluto has a density that is roughly equal to two times that of:

Pluto is composed primarily of rock.

Meteor showers appear as if they are coming from one particular place in the sky because:

Identify the object in the picture below.

Most asteroids are found in orbit around the Sun between the orbits of Jupiter and Saturn.

A comet having an orbit of 50 years would likely have come from the:

Meteorites contain clues to all of the following EXCEPT:

What does the existence of M-type asteroids tell us about their origin?

Identify the object in the picture below.

Why Learn Astronomy

Patterns in the Skymotions of Earth

Motion of Astronomical Bodies

Gravity and Orbits

Light

The Tools of the Astronomer

The Birth and Evolution of Planetary Systems

The Terrestrial Planets and Earths Moon

Atmospheres of the Terrestrial Planets

Worlds of Gas and Liquid the Giant Planets

Planetary Adornments Moons and Rings

Taking the Measure of Stars

Our Starthe Sun

Star Formation and the Interstellar Medium

Evolution of Low-Mass Stars

Evolution of High-Mass Stars

Relativity and Black Holes

The Expanding Universe

Galaxies

The Milky Waya Normal Spiral Galaxy

Modern Cosmology

Large-Scale Structure in the Universe

Life

Filters