Deck 22: Our Neighborhood in Space

Question 1

Which of the following planets is most similar to Earth?

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

Answer 1

A

Question 2

The Jovian planets are

A)also known as the ice giants.
B)also known as the terrestrial planets.
C)the four outermost planets.
D)composed primarily of rocky materials.

Answer 2

C

Question 3

Which of the following is true of the Jovian planets?

A)They are the four innermost planets.
B)They have high average densities.
C)They are all composed of rocky or metallic materials.
D)They all have moons.

Answer 3

D

Question 4

Which of the following is a Jovian planet?

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

Question 5

Most of the planets spin counterclockwise on their axes, in the prograde direction. The exception is ___________, which spins in the retrograde direction.

A)Mercury
B)Venusd.
C)Saturn
D)Uranus

Question 6

A(n) ___________ is a cloud of gas and dust in space.

A)supernova
B)heliosphere
C)nebula
D)Oort Cloud

Question 7

Compared to the Jovian planets, the terrestrial planets

A)are smaller.
B)are less dense.
C)are farther from the Sun.
D)have higher masses.

Question 8

All of the planets EXCEPT ___________ rotate counterclockwise on their axes when viewed from the sun's north pole.

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

Question 9

When did the most intense cratering of the Moon take place?

A)in modern time
B)during the early heavy bombardment
C)during the late heavy bombardment
D)during the cratering density phase

Question 10

What kind of materials only melt at high temperatures?

A)volatile materials
B)refractory materials
C)nebular materials
D)condensed materials

Question 11

The nebula from which our solar system formed contained

A)only gases.
B)gases and ice.
C)gases and dust.
D)gases, dust, and ice.

Question 12

A planet does NOT necessarily have to

A)orbit a star.
B)be spherical (large enough for internal gravitation to have smoothed out the bumps on the surface).
C)have one or more moons.
D)have cleared its orbit of other objects.

Question 13

The regions of the Moon that are of higher elevation are known as the ___________. These regions have a high albedo and display a whitish glow when viewed from Earth.

A)lunar highlands
B)maria
C)mare
D)light side

Question 14

Note the frost line in the image below. Which of these planets formed outside of the frost line?

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

Question 15

Planets beyond our solar system

A)do not exist.
B)are thought to exist but have not yet been discovered.
C)are called exoplanets.
D)are called planetsimals.

Question 16

Which of the following is MOST true of moons?

A)Moons orbit the Sun.
B)Moons orbit a planet.
C)The objects in the Kuiper Belt are examples of moons.
D)All planets have moons.

Question 17

Pluto is an example of a(n)

A)planet.
B)dwarf planet.
C)moon.
D)eccentric object.

Question 18

Which of the following is an example of a volatile material?

A)water (H₂O)
B)silica (SiO₂)
C)iron oxide (Fe₂O₃)
D)magnesium oxide (MgO)

Question 19

We are able to see the Moon from Earth because it

A)produces its own light.
B)reflects the light from the Sun.
C)reflects the light from Earth.
D)is very close to Earth.

Question 20

There are so many more craters on the Moon than on Earth because

A)the Moon is much more volcanically active, which produces numerous craters.
B)the Moon is older than Earth, so it has a longer history of impacts.
C)more objects impact the Moon than Earth because it is farther out in space.
D)more objects impact the Moon than Earth because it lacks an atmosphere.

Question 21

Which of the following planets has a core that contains rock and ice?

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

Question 22

Pluto is one of many objects in the

A)Kuiper Belt.
B)Oort Cloud.
C)asteroid belt.
D)interplanetary space.

Question 23

Olympus Mons, the largest volcano in the solar system, is found on

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

Question 24

Phobos and Demos are

A)moons of Mars.
B)moons of Jupiter.
C)moons of Venus.
D)especially large asteroids in the asteroid belt.

Question 25

Which of the following planets is a gas giant?

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

Question 26

Which of the following planets is an ice giant?

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

Question 27

Which of the following best explains the amount of micrometeorite impacts on Earth relative to the Moon?

A)The Moon and Earth are impacted with the same frequency.
B)The Moon and Earth are impacted with the same frequency, but because the moon is smaller, the impact density is greater.
C)Earth receives fewer impacts than the Moon because the majority of micrometeorites approaching Earth encounter the Moon first and thus impact it instead.
D)Earth receives fewer impacts than the Moon because the majority of micrometeorites approaching Earth burn up in the atmosphere.

Question 28

In order to become a planet, protoplanets needed to

A)finish cooling.
B)age.
C)captureat least one moon.
D)clear their orbits of debris.

Question 29

Which of the following does NOT lie within our solar system?

A)interplanetary space
B)interstellar space
C)the asteroid belt
D)the Kuiper Belt

Question 30

Which planet's atmosphere exhibits a runaway greenhouse effect?

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

Question 31

The dust and debris that covers the Moon's surface is known as

A)lunar regolith.
B)topsoil.
C)space weathering.
D)micrometeorite.

Question 32

The process of space weathering can be described as the

A)pulverization of surface material by micrometeorite impacts and cosmic rays.
B)breakdown of material as a result of erosional processes.
C)breakdown of surface material as a result of cosmic radiation.
D)pulverization of material caused by large meteorite impacts.

Question 33

Which of the following planets has rings that can be seen from Earth?

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

Question 34

Which of the following is MOST true about Jupiter's moon(s)?

A)Jupiter has no moons.
B)Jupiter has one moon named Io.
C)Jupiter has two moons named Phobos and Demos.
D)Jupiter has many moons (67 confirmed).

Question 35

Which of the following is MOST true of the presence of water on Mars?

A)There is no water, nor any evidence of water, on Mars.
B)There is evidence that suggests that there may have once been water on Mars, but no water remains.
C)There is evidence that suggests that liquid water may have existed on Mars, and the presence of water as ice has been discovered in the subsurface.
D)Liquid water has been discovered on the surface of Mars.

Question 36

Which of the following planets is LEAST similar to Earth?

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

Question 37

Which of the following is MOST true of Saturn's moon(s)?

A)Saturn has no moons.
B)Saturn has one moon named Io.
C)Saturn has one moon named Titan.
D)Saturn has many moons (62 confirmed).

Question 38

Which of the following best describes how Earth's Moon formed?

A)The Earth and Moon formed at the same time.
B)Early in the history of our solar system, an asteroid was captured by Earth's gravity and became the Moon.
C)Early in the history of our solar system, a protoplanet collided with Earth, sending debris into orbit that coalesced to form the moon.
D)During the late heavy bombardment, a group of comets were captured by Earth's gravity and coalesced to form the moon.

Question 39

The Great Red Spot on Jupiter is most likely a

A)huge volcano.
B)huge storm.
C)huge impact crater.
D)large patch of liquid water.

Question 40

Which of the following planets does NOT have rings?

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

Question 41

Contrast meteoroids, meteors, and meteorites.

Question 42

Which of the following statements is NOT true of the asteroid belt?

A)The asteroid belt is also known as the Kuiper Belt.
B)Nearly all of the asteroids in our solar system orbit the Sun within the asteroid belt.
C)The asteroid belt lies between Mars and Jupiter.
D)The asteroid belt includes primitive planetesimals that never coalesced into a planet.

Question 43

What are the ice giants? How do they differ from the gas giants?

Question 44

Contrast asteroids and comets. How do they differ in terms of composition and location within our solar system?

Question 45

Is or was there water on Mars? How do we know?

Question 46

Contrast the terrestrial and Jovian planets. Include three differences in your discussion.

Question 47

A comet has a tail because

A)it elongates as it travels through space, which creates the appearance of a tail.
B)when it comes close enough to the sun, some of its volatile materials start vaporizing and vent into space, creating a tail.
C)when it travels fast enough, it heats as a result of friction and some of its volatile materials start to burn, producing a tail.
D)when it enters Earth's atmosphere, the friction causes it to begin to vaporize, producing a brilliant trail of light.

Question 48

A meteor is

A)composed of rock and metal.
B)composed of rock and ice.
C)a light streak, also known as a shooting star.
D)a meteoroid that survives the Earth's atmosphere and strikes the ground.

Question 49

Loosely bound aggregates of rock and ice are

A)comets.
B)asteroids.
C)meteors.
D)meteorites.

Question 50

The pictures below show the near side of the moon and the far side of the moon. Why does the near side appear darker than the far side?

A)The far side of the moon is brighter because it receives more regular solar radiation.
B)The far side of the moon is characterized by the lunar highlands, which are relatively rugged and have a high albedo.
C)The near side of the moon is characterized by the maria, which has a high albedo.
D)The near side of the moon is marked by large impact craters, which tend to be dark.

Question 51

Contrast volatile and refractory materials. Provide an example of each.

Question 52

What is a planet? Why is Pluto no longer considered a planet?

Question 53

What is a moon? Do all planets have moons?

Question 54

A(n) ___________ is a streak of light and an atmospheric phenomenon, also known as a shooting star.

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

Question 55

How is the condensation theory for the formation of the solar system different from the nebular theory?

Question 56

A meteoroid that strikes Earth after having made it through the atmosphere without burning up is a

A)comet.
B)asteroid.
C)meteor.
D)meteorite.

Question 57

Observe the image of the moon below. What feature is indicated?

A)maria
B)space weathering
C)lunar highlands
D)Olympus Mons

Question 58

Observe the image of the moon below. The feature the arrow is pointing to is likely a(n)

A)large volcanic crater.
B)prominent erosional feature.
C)impact crater.
D)lunar regolith.

Question 59

Rocky or metallic objects larger than 100 m (330 ft) are known as

A)comets.
B)asteroids.
C)meteors.
D)meteorites.

Question 60

Contrast the atmospheres of Venus and Earth. Specifically, how are they the same or different in terms of composition, thickness, and greenhouse effect? What effect does this have on surface temperatures?