Deck 22: Touring Our Solar System

Question 1

Which of the following is not a Jovian planet?

A) Saturn
B) Neptune
C) Jupiter
D) Pluto

Answer 1

Pluto

Question 2

Rayed craters like Tyco and Copernicus are known to be younger than the lunar maria because ___________.

A) they contain volcanos in their centers which indicate the moon still had magma available when they formed
B) their ejecta, seen as rays, lies across the surface of the maria
C) they are formed on lunar highlands that are known to be younger than the maria
D) they have been dated directly by radiometric dating of samples

Answer 2

their ejecta, seen as rays, lies across the surface of the maria

Question 3

Consider the below image of a crater on the Moon. Why would you not expect to see a similar landscape on Earth? Earth has ___________and___________ .

A) a much weaker atmosphere; is covered with regolith
B) a much stronger atmosphere; is not covered with regolith
C) a much stronger atmosphere; is covered with regolith
D) a much weaker atmosphere; is not covered with regolith

Answer 3

a much stronger atmosphere; is not covered with regolith

Question 4

The___________ explains how our solar system probably formed from a giant cloud of gases and dispersed solid particles.

A) planetary compression theory
B) nebular hypothesis
C) protogalactic theory
D) extrastellar solar hypothesis

Question 5

Why do lunar scientists think the surface of the Moon was once a magma ocean?

A) The surface of the Moon is entirely volcanic.
B) Early lunar craters show a morphology suggesting impact with a liquid.
C) The lunar highlands contain large amounts of the rock anorthosite, which is the light material that "floated" on the top of the magma ocean.
D) None of these is correct.

Question 6

Regolith is not a true soil because it___________ .

A) is not on Earth
B) has no rock material
C) lacks organic material
D) is not formed in a dense atmosphere

Question 7

What atmospheric gas is common in the outer planets but rare in the inner planets?

A) hydrogen
B) argon
C) nitrogen
D) carbon dioxide

Question 8

The most popular theory for the origin of the Moon today is___________ .

A) the Moon was formed when Mars and a comparable size planet collided, and the Moon was ejected toward Earth and captured
B) the early Earth and a planet the size of Mars collided, and the ejected material coalesced to form Earth's Moon
C) the Moon and Earth coalesced from an eddy in the solar nebular, forming a binary planet system
D) Earth captured a small planet, which is our moon

Question 9

Which of these lunar features is the oldest?

A) lunar soil
B) rayed craters like Copernicus
C) lunar highlands
D) maria basins

Question 10

We know the age of the lunar highlands from ___________.

A) dating of Earth rocks, and correlating to lunar events
B) dating of lunar rocks collected by Apollo missions
C) age estimates from cratering rates
D) dating of lunar maria basalts collected by Apollo astronauts, and then calculated back in time by relative chronology

Question 11

What is a popular theory for the difference in atmospheres of the Jovian planets versus terrestrial planets?

A) High temperatures and solar wind in the inner planets allowed most of the volatiles to be driven off the terrestrial planets, but not the Jovian planets.
B) The Jovian planets trapped most of the comets which carried the gases.
C) The Jovian planets are just bigger, so they trap more gases.
D) The terrestrial planets are too cold to retain anything but heavy gases.

Question 12

How did the lunar maria most likely originate?

A) The solar wind eroded very wide, shallow basins that filled with lunar dust.
B) Huge impact basins were nearly filled with basaltic lava flows.
C) Huge impact craters filled with frozen carbon dioxide and dark- colored silt and dust.
D) Massive, basaltic comets melted when they hit the lunar surface.

Question 13

Which of the following characterizes the history of impacts on Earth as deduced by impact history on other terrestrial planets?

A) All major impacts occurred in the first 100 million years after the solar system formed.
B) Impacts were more intense in the early history of Earth but have continued at about half the rate of bombardment since about 4.4 billion years ago.
C) Impacts continued at a fairly constant rate throughout the 4.5 billion year history of the solar system.
D) Impact rates were very high in the early history of Earth, but dropped off after about the first 1 billion years of Earth history to a nearly constant rate since that time.

Question 14

We know from the Apollo missions and unmanned probes that the Moon's surface is covered with loose, unconsolidated material with a texture similar to soil on earth. How did this material form on the Moon?

A) The material is mostly volcanic ash ejected from volcanos that are no longer active.
B) The same as Earth, but soils are ancient from a time when the moon still had an atmosphere and water.
C) The material is produced by spalling from rock surfaces caused by the extreme heat- cold cycles as the moon rotates through a 1 lunar day, or approximately one Earth month.
D) The loose material is mostly micrometeorite fragments and ejecta from impact craters, so is very different from soil on Earth.

Question 15

Which observation supports the theory that the planets formed from a disk shaped nebula?

A) The Sun is the center of the solar system.
B) Pluto and comets follow elliptical orbits that pass inside the orbit of Neptune.
C) The planets revolve around the Sun in approximately the same plane of the ecliptic.
D) The rocky planets are close to the Sun.

Question 16

Vast, circular to elliptical dark- colored areas on the moon called maria represent___________ .

A) very large impact craters filled with basaltic lava
B) large volcanos
C) remnant highlands produced from a time when the moon was entirely molten
D) large lowlands that were sea- beds when the moon had water

Question 17

Which one of the following is not found on Mars?

A) extinct volcanoes
B) sand dunes
C) polar ice caps
D) H₂O- rich atmosphere

Question 18

Which one of the following is most likely to be associated both with impact craters and with volcanic calderas that originate by collapse?

A) landslides and other mass wasting movements along the walls of the depression
B) sharp rims that rise well above the surrounding area far away from the edge of the depression
C) outwardly radiating, fragmental, bright, surface streaks
D) sharp, central peaks that rise above the floor of the depression

Question 19

Most of the Moon's craters were produced by ___________.

A) faulting
B) volcanic eruptions
C) the impact of meteoroids
D) radial implosions

Question 20

Most of the mass in the solar system is contained___________ .

A) in the outer planets
B) in the Sun plus Jupiter
C) in the Sun
D) in the inner planets

Question 21

In 2012 scientists discovered that Mercury has an___________that is about 100 times weaker than that on Earth.

A) gravitational attraction
B) gaseous atmosphere
C) magnetic field
D) atmosphere

Question 22

___________has atmospheric pressures at its surface that are roughly comparable to those at Earth's surface.

A) Jupiter's moon Io
B) Neptune's moon Cassini
C) Saturn's moon Titan
D) Uranus's moon Miranda

Question 23

Both Earth's Moon and Mars have thick layers of loose surface materials. How are they different?

A) They are different. Lunar regolith is mostly ejecta from impacts whereas Martian regolith is primarily wind- blown dust and sand on older surfaces that vary from water laid surfaces to volcanic surfaces.
B) They are not different. They are both comprised primarily of ejecta from impacts that accumulates on the surface.
C) They are not different. Both have surfaces that are remnant soils from a period when they had water on the surface.
D) They are different. Lunar regolith is mostly ejecta from impacts, whereas Martian soil is more earthlike with classic soils developed by weathering of rock.

Question 24

Which planet rotates the opposite direction it revolves around the Sun?

A) Mercury
B) Earth
C) Mars
D) Venus

Question 25

The largest known volcano in the solar system is ___________.

A) Vulcan on Venus
B) Mauna Loa, Hawaii, on Earth
C) Olympus Mons on Mars
D) Solfatara on Jupiter

Question 26

Jupiter's moon Io is thought to be the volcanically active world in our solar system. What is the inferred source of heat?

A) Io has a strong magnetic field as does Jupiter, so as Io moves through Jupiter's magnetic field, large electrical currents are generated, which heat the planet.
B) It is a mystery; it should be very cold because it is the same size as the moon but far from the sun.
C) Io is close to Jupiter, and the strong tidal forces on planet produce frictional heating of the planet.
D) Very high abundances of radioactive elements have been detected on the planet.

Question 27

Venus has dense clouds and thick atmosphere, yet there is no evidence for water on the surface. Why?

A) The water has all been taken up in minerals on the surface due to weather long ago because of high chemical weathering rates.
B) Water could not survive as liquid water on the surface because it is too hot.
C) It is hard to know because the clouds obscure the surface and only a few probes have survived landing.
D) The water is bound up as sulfuric acids and other acids in the atmosphere.

Question 28

___________has the great, dark spot on its surface.

A) Jupiter
B) Uranus
C) Venus
D) Mars

Question 29

What did the Mars rover Opportunity discover on Mars that relates to questions about the existence of water on Mars?

A) The rover found sedimentary rocks that contained minerals that could only have formed by precipitation from water.
B) The rover found liquid water emerging from a spring, freezing to ice.
C) The rover found ice in the soil.
D) The rover found no evidence of water ever having been on Mars.

Question 30

The surface features of ___________are known only through satellite radar mapping.

A) Mars
B) Jupiter
C) Mercury
D) Venus

Question 31

Compared to Earth's atmosphere, the atmosphere of Mars has surface pressures that are ___________.

A) 0.1 times those on Earth; major gases are water vapor and carbon dioxide
B) 1.5 times those on Earth; main gases are methane and nitrogen
C) one- half those on Earth; main gases are methane and nitrogen
D) 3 times those on Earth; major gases are water vapor and carbon dioxide

Question 32

___________are found both on Mars and Earth.

A) Heavily cratered landscapes preserved from early in the planets' histories
B) Active volcanoes
C) Erosional features related to flowing water
D) Oceans

Question 33

Venus is usually described as a runaway greenhouse effect world, which is true in the sense that the atmosphere is mostly CO₂. However, the slow rotation of Venus produces a huge heat influx difference from the day to night side of the planet, which produces descending air on the night side and ascending air on the day side. Because the atmosphere is so dense, this means air rises to high elevations on the day side, and descends to surface on the night side. As a result, the night side of the planet is nearly as hot, or even hotter, than the day side. What would be the principal reason for this?

A) The air is so dense it has a large heat capacity.
B) As the air descends on the night side of the planet, it is heated by adiabatic compression to a very high temperature-a grand scale equivalent of Chinook or Santa Ana winds on Earth.
C) The winds must be very, very high, and transport the heat efficiently from one side of the planet to the other.
D) None of these makes sense.

Question 34

The high surface temperatures of___________ have been attributed to the greenhouse effect.

A) Uranus
B) Mars
C) Venus
D) Mercury

Question 35

___________is the principal gas in the Venusian atmosphere and also a minor component of the atmospheres of Earth and Mars.

A) Carbon dioxide
B) Nitrogen
C) Methane
D) Ozone

Question 36

Mercury reflects___________ percent of the sunlight that hits it into space.

A) 31
B) 6
C) 2
D) 13

Question 37

Why has it been so difficult to examine the surface of Venus with unmanned probes?

A) The air pressure at the surface is equivalent to a water depth of nearly 1km on Earth, and temperatures are very high, which tends to destroy the probes.
B) Solar radiation is so intense that probes are lost before they reach Venus.
C) The atmosphere is so cloudy that it interferes with radio wave signals from earth, making communication with a probe difficult.
D) The Venesian magnetic field is so strong it destroys electronics on the probes.

Question 38

In the science fiction book series "Red Mars, Green Mars, Blue Mars" the author spins a story of "terraforming" Mars with the formation of oceans and a breathable atmosphere by the end of the series. The author describes a scenario, however, where the inhabitants of this fictional world were able to live relatively normally on most of the world but not on Olympus Mons and the Tharsus region. Assuming you could create a breathable atmosphere as described in the books, is the description of where you might live on Mars realistic, or just spinning a yarn?

A) No, it is absurd. Even with an atmosphere, it would be too cold to live anywhere on Mars.
B) No, because these regions are so rugged it would be impossible to live in the Martian mountains, regardless of an atmosphere or not.
C) No, because you could use water ice from these high altitude sites whereas there is no water at lower elevations on Mars.
D) Yes, because Olympus Mons and the Tharsus region are higher above the Martian plains than Mt. Everest, so the air would always be dramatically thinner and colder there, even with an Earth atmosphere.

Question 39

___________, a moon orbiting Jupiter, has an unusually smooth, uncratered, ice- covered surface.

A) Europa
B) Titan
C) Miranda
D) Phobos

Question 40

Jupiter contains a number of small moons that are thought to be captured comets or material ejected by collisions with larger objects. What is the evidence for this theory?

A) Spacecraft have sampled them, and they are known to be comets.
B) Analyses from spacecraft show they have compositions completely different than Jupiter or its moons.
C) They are too big to have been formed during planetary accretion.
D) Their orbits are highly elliptical, off the plane of the ecliptic, and many are retrograde, which is unlikely for satellite formed during planetary accretion.

Question 41

What is the most abundant element in the atmospheres of Jupiter and Saturn?

A) helium
B) hydrogen
C) nitrogen
D) ammonia

Question 42

Why do geologists use the radiometric age of meteorites as a guide to age of the solar system?

A) The meteorites have been isolated in the cold vacuum of space since their formation, so they have seen no significant heating since the time of their formation.
B) The meteorites have compositions close to Earth materials, so we assume they formed at the same time.
C) The geologists are guessing because they yield some of the oldest radiometric ages.
D) The meteorites date the time of formation of a dead planet and don't have anything to do with the age of the solar system.

Question 43

Pluto is now classified as a ___________ in our solar system.

A) dwarf planet
B) terrestrial planet
C) comet
D) Jovian planet

Question 44

Examine the words and/or phrases below and determine the relationship among the majority of words/phrases. Choose the option that does not fit the pattern.

A) Saturn
B) Jupiter
C) Mercury
D) Uranus

Question 45

Which of the following is not true of the rings of Saturn

A) They are mostly very thin, forming a large planar disk.
B) They are comprised of various sized objects ranging from dust to moon- size objects.
C) The faintest outer rings are closely associated with the moon Enceladus.
D) They are remnants of the formation of the planet and have not changed over time.

Question 46

What moon in the outer solar system is most "earthlike" in terms of landforms, and possesses liquids liquid methane not water. flowing across the surface?

A) Ganymede
B) Titan
C) Europa
D) Tethys

Question 47

___________meteorites are thought to be analogous in composition to Earth's core.

A) Stony
B) Iron
C) Calcareous
D) Ammonical

Question 48

Neptune and Uranus both appear bluish in sunlight whereas Jupiter and Saturn are multicolored. Why are Neptune and Uranus blue?

A) They contain methane ice in their atmosphere which causes the color.
B) They do not contain dust and debris in the atmosphere, like Saturn and Jupiter.
C) They contain ice crystals high in the atmosphere, and water ice is blue.
D) The effect is not real; it is just due to low light levels.

Question 49

Consider the following diagram of a comet's orbit: What is illustrated about comets here?

A) Ionized cometary gases being pushed away from the coma by the pressure of the solar wind of charged particles coming from the sun emitted by the Sun.
B) The part of the comet where comets are most concentrated is in the part of the comet farthest from the sun.
C) Comets are like planets and revolve in regular orbitals around a single star.
D) Comets are hotter than the Sun which is why they have such a different appearance from the Sun.

Question 50

A comet is visible because___________ .

A) it is a small object, but it ejects gas and dust that at is dispersed by the solar wind to form a tail thousands of km long
B) it boils off steam that streams outward along the comet's path
C) it is composed of white material, mostly ice
D) it is a very large object that get stretched out by interaction with the Sun's gravity

Question 51

___________are small, extraterrestrial particles that glow brightly and burn up as they travel through Earth's atmosphere.

A) Mesocoronas
B) Microcomets
C) Meteoroids
D) Asteroids

Question 52

Saturn is famous for its rings. Which of the following Jovian planets does not have rings?

A) Neptune
B) Uranus
C) Jupiter
D) None, all of the Jovian planets have rings

Question 53

Which planet has the highest recorded winds in the solar system?

A) Mars
B) Uranus
C) Neptune
D) Venus

Question 54

Earlier in this class you learned about the Coriolis force. Given your knowledge of this force and Jupiter, which of these statements is most accurate?

A) The Coriolis force is much stronger on Jupiter than on Earth because Jupiter rotates more slowly than Earth and is much larger than Earth.
B) The Coriolis force is the same on Jupiter as on Earth.
C) The Coriolis force is much weaker on Jupiter than on Earth because of the strong gravity on Jupiter.
D) The Coriolis force is much stronger on Jupiter than on Earth because it rotates more than twice as fast as Earth and it is much larger than Earth.

Question 55

The famous gap in Saturn's rings is known as the ___________division.

A) Galileo
B) Fermi
C) Cassini
D) Io

Question 56

Jupiter's atmosphere displays spectacular cyclonic and anticyclonic storms, some persisting for long periods of time. How do these storms form?

A) Jupiter has a very strong magnetic field, and these storms both form the field and are strengthened by it as it feeds electric currents in the atmosphere.
B) They form like storms on the Sun, for low level nuclear fusion in Jupiter's core.
C) They are due to internal heat exchange within the planet, basically convection currents transferring internal heat to the surface.
D) Like on Earth, they result from differential solar heating of the equatorial region versus poles, and resultant atmospheric circulation.

Question 57

___________refers to the bright head of a comet.

A) Lira
B) Toma
C) Lima
D) Coma

Question 58

Several of the moons of Saturn, Uranus and Neptune display evidence of volcanic activity. What is the most common type of volcano on these moons?

A) ice volcanos
B) pyroclastic eruptions of rhyolitic silicate material
C) basalt shield volcanos
D) sulfur volcanos

Question 59

Examine the words and/or phrases below and determine the relationship among the majority of words/phrases. Choose the option that does not fit the pattern.

A) Earth
B) Jupiter
C) Mars
D) Venus

Question 60

Which one of the following statements is believed to be true of comets?

A) Their bright, glowing appearance in the night sky is due to frictional heating in Earth's atmosphere.
B) They have highly elliptical orbits around the Sun.
C) They may gain slightly in mass with each orbit around the Sun.
D) They are composed mostly of dense rock particles.

Question 61

Large impact craters and large, domal features probably representing viscous lava flows. have been imaged on the surface of ___________.

A) Mercury
B) Venus
C) Mars
D) Saturn

Question 62

The polar caps on ___________ are thought to be mainly water ice with a thin layer of carbon dioxide in the cold season.

A) Earth
B) Mars
C) Mercury
D) Venus

Question 63

The planet with the highest density is a___________ .

A) Jovian planet
B) planetessimal
C) terrestrial planet
D) dwarf planet

Question 64

The youngest rocks found on the Moon by Apollo missions are___________ than all but a few rocks on Earth.

A) almost as old as
B) older
C) younger
D) the same age as

Question 65

The Moon has highland areas which___________ the height of mountains on Earth.

A) are exactly the same as
B) are much less than
C) approach
D) far surpass

Question 66

Examine the words and/or phrases below and determine the relationship among the majority of words/phrases. Choose the option that does not fit the pattern.

A) Callisto
B) Titan
C) Phobos
D) Pluto

Question 67

___________is the major gas in the atmosphere of Venus.

A) Carbon dioxide
B) Sulfur
C) Nitrogen
D) Water vapor

Question 68

___________is the largest and most massive planet in the solar system.

A) Saturn
B) Jupiter
C) Uranus
D) Neptune

Question 69

Examine the words and/or phrases below and determine the relationship among the majority of words/phrases. Choose the option that does not fit the pattern.

A) comet
B) meteorite
C) planet
D) asteroid

Question 70

Which of these planets has rings?

A) Jupiter
B) Saturn
C) Neptune
D) All of these

Question 71

The most abundant gas in the planetary atmospheres in___________ .

A) nitrogen
B) water vapor
C) sulfur
D) hydrogen

Question 72

The most extreme example of the greenhouse effect in the solar system is associated with an abundance of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere of ___________.

A) Earth
B) Mars
C) Mercury
D) Venus

Question 73

Although its atmosphere is less dense than Earth's, dust storms and sand dunes indicate wind action occurs on___________ .

A) Earth
B) Mars
C) Mercury
D) Venus

Question 74

The largest known volcano in the solar system is on___________ .

A) Earth
B) Mars
C) Mercury
D) Venus

Question 75

Rayed craters on the Moon, such as Copernicus, formed ___________.

A) around the time of the Big Bang
B) early in Moon's history
C) relatively recently in the Moon's history
D) prior to the formation of the maria

Question 76

The very large, lava- covered areas of the Moon are called ___________.

A) maria
B) craters
C) regolith
D) highlands

Question 77

Lunar regolith breccia contains crystalline rock fragments and glassy fragments formed by ___________.

A) solar flares
B) meteorite impacts
C) asteroid fragments
D) comet trails

Question 78

Of the terrestrial planets,___________ exhibits the greatest lateral variations in surface temperatures.

A) Venus
B) Mars
C) Earth
D) Mercury

Question 79

There is evidence of water on ___________.

A) Mercury
B) the Moon
C) Mars
D) Venus

Question 80

Impact craters are common on the surface of all of the terrestrial planets except___________ .

A) Mercury
B) Earth
C) Venus
D) Mars