Question 1

Although asteroids are small individually,when combined they make up about a quarter of all the mass in the Solar System,excluding the Sun.

Accepted Answer

A) True 
 B)False

Question 2

Eris is classified as an asteroid even though its mass is 28 percent larger than Pluto's mass.

Accepted Answer

A) True 
 B)False

Question 3

Cometary nuclei provide evidence that the ingredients necessary for the creation of life were present in the early solar nebula.

Accepted Answer

A) True 
 B)False

Question 4

Consider a meteoroid with a diameter of 10 cm and a mass of 2 kg that hits the Earth head-on while traveling at a speed of 25,000 m/s.How many times larger or smaller is the meteoroid's kinetic energy compared to that of a typical train whose mass is 2 × 106 kg and speed is 25 m/s?

Accepted Answer

A) The meteoroid's kinetic energy is equal to that of the train. 
B) The meteoroid's kinetic energy is 1,000 times less than that of the train. 
C) The meteoroid's kinetic energy is 1,000 times greater than that of the train. 
D) The meteoroid's kinetic energy is 106 times greater than that of the train. 
E) The meteoroid's kinetic energy is 109 times greater than that of the train. 
A) The meteoroid's kinetic energy is equal to that of the train. 
B) The meteoroid's kinetic energy is 1,000 times less than that of the train. 
C) The meteoroid's kinetic energy is 1,000 times greater than that of the train. 
D) The meteoroid's kinetic energy is 106 times greater than that of the train. 
E) The meteoroid's kinetic energy is 109 times greater than that of the train.

Question 5

Comet Halley is unique because:

Accepted Answer

A) it was the first comet whose return was predicted 
B) it is a member of the Jovian family,but has a retrograde orbit 
C) its period is less than a human lifetime 
D) it was successfully visited by a spacecraft 
E) it was the brightest comet ever observed by humans 
A) it was the first comet whose return was predicted 
B) it is a member of the Jovian family,but has a retrograde orbit 
C) its period is less than a human lifetime 
D) it was successfully visited by a spacecraft 
E) it was the brightest comet ever observed by humans

Question 6

The Lyrid meteor shower occurs every year on approximately April 21 because:

Accepted Answer

A) the Lyrae constellation is directly overhead at midnight 
B) the Earth passes through a cloud of debris left behind by Comet Thatcher 
C) the Earth passes through a cloud of debris left over from the Solar System's formation 
D) the Earth undergoes a periodic volcanic eruption every April 
E) the sun is located in the Lyrae constellation at noon 
A) the Lyrae constellation is directly overhead at midnight 
B) the Earth passes through a cloud of debris left behind by Comet Thatcher 
C) the Earth passes through a cloud of debris left over from the Solar System's formation 
D) the Earth undergoes a periodic volcanic eruption every April 
E) the sun is located in the Lyrae constellation at noon

Question 7

A large meteor shower will often occur once a year because:

Accepted Answer

A) Earth typically has one large volcanic eruption every year 
B) the Earth's orbit passes through the Apollo asteroid belt 
C) the Sun goes through a yearly solar cycle 
D) Jupiter routinely disturbs the orbits of asteroids in the Jovian belt 
E) the Earth passes through the debris left behind by a specific comet 
A) Earth typically has one large volcanic eruption every year 
B) the Earth's orbit passes through the Apollo asteroid belt 
C) the Sun goes through a yearly solar cycle 
D) Jupiter routinely disturbs the orbits of asteroids in the Jovian belt 
E) the Earth passes through the debris left behind by a specific comet

Question 8

Which group of asteroids regularly crosses Earth's orbit and thus might possibly collide with our planet?

Accepted Answer

A) the Amors 
B) the Atens 
C) the Kuiper Belt objects 
D) the Trojans 
E) all of the above 
A) the Amors 
B) the Atens 
C) the Kuiper Belt objects 
D) the Trojans 
E) all of the above

Question 9

Give examples of a C-type asteroid and an S-type asteroid that have been observed by spacecraft.What did we learn about each type?

Accepted Answer

An example of a C-type asteroid would be

Question 10

You find a blackened rock lying on top of the snow.You find that it is fairly dense and suspect it might be a meteorite.You take it to a lab,and they cut it open to reveal many small spherical,glassy particles set into the surrounding rock.Is this a meteorite? Why,or why not?

Accepted Answer

Yes,it is likely that you have found a s

Question 11

All meteorites are remnants of planetesimals that never coalesced to form a planet.

Accepted Answer

A) True 
 B)False

Question 12

Name three properties of the dwarf planets Pluto and Eris that are similar.

Accepted Answer

They have relatively similar masses and

Question 13

Which of the following comets has NOT been visited by spacecraft?

Accepted Answer

A) Halley 
B) Wild 2 
C) Tempel 1 
D) Hartley 2 
E) Shoemaker-Levy 9 
A) Halley 
B) Wild 2 
C) Tempel 1 
D) Hartley 2 
E) Shoemaker-Levy 9

Question 14

Some asteroids have moons just like planets do.

Accepted Answer

A) True 
 B)False

Question 15

In November 2005,the Japanese spacecraft Hayabusa brought back sample from which type of object for the first time?

Accepted Answer

A) comet 
B) asteroid 
C) moon 
D) terrestrial planet 
E) gas giant planet 
A) comet 
B) asteroid 
C) moon 
D) terrestrial planet 
E) gas giant planet

Question 16

Give the definitions of meteoroid,meteor,and meteorite,and clearly explain how they differ.

Accepted Answer

Meteoroids are rocks too small to be ast

Question 17

In the early universe,when the Solar System had yet to be cleared of the debris out of which it formed,which type of object would have been most likely to deposit water onto Earth's surface?

Accepted Answer

A) comets 
B) asteroids 
C) a Mars-sized protoplanet 
D) a rogue moon 
E) none,because water is not a major component of any of the objects above 
A) comets 
B) asteroids 
C) a Mars-sized protoplanet 
D) a rogue moon 
E) none,because water is not a major component of any of the objects above

Question 18

Let's say that you discovered a comet in the outer Solar System that had an average albedo of 0.6.If its surface was composed of a mixture of organic substances,which had an albedo of 0,and ice,which had an albedo of 1.0,then what percent of its surface is covered by organic substances?

Accepted Answer

Let X be the fraction of the surface tha

Question 19

Suppose we discover a comet whose orbit was very highly eccentric,retrograde,had a very large tilt with respect to the ecliptic plane,and a period of 2,000 years.Where is the most likely place of origin for this comet?

Accepted Answer

A) the Kuiper Belt 
B) the Oort Cloud 
C) the asteroid belt 
D) the Jovian family 
E) outside the Solar System 
A) the Kuiper Belt 
B) the Oort Cloud 
C) the asteroid belt 
D) the Jovian family 
E) outside the Solar System

Question 20

Remnants of volcanic activity on the asteroid Vesta indicate that members of the asteroid belt:

Accepted Answer

A) were once part of a single protoplanet that was shattered by collisions 
B) have all undergone significant chemical evolution since formation 
C) occasionally grow large enough to become differentiated and geologically active 
D) were once a part of a young Mars 
E) used to be volcanic moons orbiting other planets 
A) were once part of a single protoplanet that was shattered by collisions 
B) have all undergone significant chemical evolution since formation 
C) occasionally grow large enough to become differentiated and geologically active 
D) were once a part of a young Mars 
E) used to be volcanic moons orbiting other planets

Exam 12: Dwarf Planets and Small Solar System Bodies

Although asteroids are small individually,when combined they make up about a quarter of all the mass in the Solar System,excluding the Sun.

Eris is classified as an asteroid even though its mass is 28 percent larger than Pluto's mass.

Cometary nuclei provide evidence that the ingredients necessary for the creation of life were present in the early solar nebula.

Consider a meteoroid with a diameter of 10 cm and a mass of 2 kg that hits the Earth head-on while traveling at a speed of 25,000 m/s.How many times larger or smaller is the meteoroid's kinetic energy compared to that of a typical train whose mass is 2 × 106 kg and speed is 25 m/s?

Comet Halley is unique because:

The Lyrid meteor shower occurs every year on approximately April 21 because:

A large meteor shower will often occur once a year because:

Which group of asteroids regularly crosses Earth's orbit and thus might possibly collide with our planet?

Give examples of a C-type asteroid and an S-type asteroid that have been observed by spacecraft.What did we learn about each type?

You find a blackened rock lying on top of the snow.You find that it is fairly dense and suspect it might be a meteorite.You take it to a lab,and they cut it open to reveal many small spherical,glassy particles set into the surrounding rock.Is this a meteorite? Why,or why not?

All meteorites are remnants of planetesimals that never coalesced to form a planet.

Name three properties of the dwarf planets Pluto and Eris that are similar.

Which of the following comets has NOT been visited by spacecraft?

Some asteroids have moons just like planets do.

In November 2005,the Japanese spacecraft Hayabusa brought back sample from which type of object for the first time?

Give the definitions of meteoroid,meteor,and meteorite,and clearly explain how they differ.

In the early universe,when the Solar System had yet to be cleared of the debris out of which it formed,which type of object would have been most likely to deposit water onto Earth's surface?

Let's say that you discovered a comet in the outer Solar System that had an average albedo of 0.6.If its surface was composed of a mixture of organic substances,which had an albedo of 0,and ice,which had an albedo of 1.0,then what percent of its surface is covered by organic substances?

Suppose we discover a comet whose orbit was very highly eccentric,retrograde,had a very large tilt with respect to the ecliptic plane,and a period of 2,000 years.Where is the most likely place of origin for this comet?

Remnants of volcanic activity on the asteroid Vesta indicate that members of the asteroid belt:

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

Consider a meteoroid with a diameter of 10 cm and a mass of 2 kg that hits the Earth head-on while traveling at a speed of 25,000 m/s.How many times larger or smaller is the meteoroid's kinetic energy compared to that of a typical train whose mass is 2 × 10⁶ kg and speed is 25 m/s?