Deck 17: Mercury, Venus and Mars

Question 1

Mars has a sufficient mass and a low enough temperature that water molecules could exist in its atmosphere as vapor. One reason Mars's atmosphere does not contain a significant amount of water vapor is that

A) Mars formed in a part of the solar nebula that lacked oxygen.
B) Mars formed in a part of the solar nebula that lacked hydrogen.
C) all of the water vapor was released in the impact that formed Deimos.
D) ultraviolet radiation breaks the water molecule into less massive particles that can escape.
E) the water molecule combines readily with chlorine to form hydrochloric acid.

Answer 1

ultraviolet radiation breaks the water molecule into less massive particles that can escape.

Question 2

Which of the following are not found on Venus?

A) volcanoes
B) coronae
C) rolling plains
D) lobate scarps
E) high atmospheric pressure

Answer 2

lobate scarps

Question 3

The graph below plots the escape velocity of each planet along the vertical axis and its surface temperature along the horizontal. The lines plotted in the figure are the average speeds of gas particles as a function of temperature for various gases. Which of the planets or satellite plotted in this diagram has the greatest escape velocity?

A) Mars
B) the moon
C) Mercury
D) Venus
E) Earth

Answer 3

Earth

Question 4

Which of the following supports the idea that the Martian crust is not divided into moving plates like those on Earth?

A) I & II
B) II & III
C) II, III & IV
D) I, II, & III
E) I, II, III, & IV

Question 5

The theory that Mercury shrank slightly when it was young has been proposed to explain

A) extended lava plains.
B) large craters.
C) magnetic field.
D) lobate scarps.
E) regolith.

Question 6

The geology of Venus appears to be dominated by

A) volcanism.
B) plate tectonics.
C) erosion by flowing water.
D) impact cratering.
E) strip mining.

Question 7

The moons of Mars are believed to be

A) composed primarily of iron and nickel.
B) composed primarily of frozen gases of water and carbon dioxide.
C) orbiting Mars in a direction opposite to the direction that Mars rotates.
D) formed from material ejected from Olympus Mons and other large volcanoes on Mars.
E) captured asteroids.

Question 8

Which of the solar system objects listed below is most similar to Earth in terms of mass and density?

A) Mercury
B) the moon
C) Venus
D) Mars
E) Deimos

Question 9

The graph below plots the escape velocity of each planet along the vertical axis and its surface temperature along the horizontal. The lines plotted in the figure are the speeds of the fastest gas particles as a function of temperature for various gases. Which of the gases plotted in the diagram could be retained in the atmosphere of Mars?

A) only CO₂
B) only NH₃
C) CO₂, NH₃, and O₂
D) only H₂
E) H₂ and He

Question 10

Coronae on Venus are believed to be

A) impact craters.
B) caused by rising convection currents in the interior of Venus.
C) the result of plate tectonics.
D) located only in the polar regions of Venus.
E) much older than the highlands such as Ishtar Terra.

Question 11

Besides Earth, which of the terrestrial planets and/or satellites of terrestrial planets show(s) evidence for the possible existence of liquid water flowing on its surface in the past?

A) Venus
B) the moon
C) Phobos
D) Mars
E) None of the terrestrial planets or satellites show such evidence.

Question 12

How rapidly a planet loses its atmosphere depends on the planet's

A) I & II
B) III & IV
C) I, II, & III
D) II, III, & IV
E) I, II, III, & IV

Question 13

That Mercury has a large iron core is evidenced by

A) the large lobate scarps.
B) the large mean density of Mercury.
C) the lava flows near Caloris Basin.
D) all of the above.
E) none of the above.

Question 14

The crust of Mars is believed to ____ than Earth's.

A) be much thinner
B) be younger
C) contain more water
D) be more geologically active
E) be much stronger

Question 15

The greenhouse effect keeps Venus hot because

A) the atmosphere contains free oxygen.
B) the atmosphere is predominantly carbon dioxide.
C) the surface converts infrared into visible radiation.
D) the surface is free of sulfur compounds.
E) the magnetic field traps a large number of particles from the solar wind.

Question 16

Measurements of the magnetic field of Venus reveal that the

A) planet has a large iron core.
B) interior of the planet is molten.
C) planet has no detectable magnetic field.
D) planet rotates backwards.
E) magnetic field is responsible for large auroral displays (northern lights) on Venus.

Question 17

____ is a very long and deep canyon on Mars.

A) Valles Marineris
B) Ishtar Terra
C) Tharsis Bulge
D) Lobate Scarp
E) Phobos

Question 18

The flow patterns found on the surface of Mars and the number of craters on top of them suggest that

A) Mars is today a liquid, water-rich world.
B) the climate on Mars was different billions of years ago.
C) volcanism is occurring on Mars.
D) the polar caps are made of liquid water.
E) all of the above.

Question 19

____ are believed to have formed on Mercury when the planet's interior cooled and shrank.

A) Jumbled terrain
B) The highlands
C) Maria
D) Lobate scarps
E) Sinuous rilles

Question 20

The graph below plots the escape velocity of each planet along the vertical axis and its surface temperature along the horizontal. The lines plotted in the figure are the average speeds of gas particles as a function of temperature for various gases. Which of the planets or satellite plotted in this diagram is least able to hold an atmosphere?

A) Mars
B) the moon
C) Mercury
D) Venus
E) Earth

Question 21

Which object has the most intense sunlight on it?

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

Question 22

The greenhouse effect produces excess heat in a planet's atmosphere by

A) trapping infrared radiation from escaping into space.
B) clouds blocking the surface from receiving any infrared radiation.
C) preventing light gases from escaping into space.
D) trapping ultraviolet light in the upper atmosphere of the planet.

Question 23

The size of the volcanoes on Mars indicate that Mars has a(n) ____________________ crust than Earth.

Question 24

Which one of the phrases below is the current explanation of why the surface of Venus is so hot?

A) Venus's poor reflectivity
B) the action of the greenhouse effect caused by carbon dioxide
C) always keeping the same face turned toward the sun
D) the action of the greenhouse effect caused by hydrogen

Question 25

The largest volcano found on one of the terrestrial planets is ____________________.

Question 26

Why does Mars have seasons similar to the Earth?

A) Mars is roughly the same distance from the sun as Earth.
B) Mars is the same size as the Earth.
C) The shape of Mars's orbit is the same as the Earth's.
D) Mars's rotational axis is tilted relative to its orbit like the Earth's.

Question 27

Which of the terrestrial planets has the most difficult time retaining an atmosphere?

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

Question 28

What physical property of Venus is vastly dissimilar compared to Earth?

A) radius
B) mass
C) density
D) surface temperature

Question 29

____________________ is the molecule most responsible for the greenhouse effect on Venus and Earth.

Question 30

Which of the objects below has an atmosphere consisting mostly of carbon dioxide?

A) Earth
B) Mercury
C) Earth's moon
D) Venus
E) none of the above

Question 31

Which Terrestrial planet has the largest moon or moons relative to the planet circled?

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

Question 32

One hypothesis suggested to explain the uniform age of the surface of Venus is that

A) Venus's surface is 4 billion years old and has not been affected by flooding or slow evolution.
B) Venus's surface is made of rocks that are much harder than Earth's and thus last longer.
C) Venus periodically goes through a catastrophic melting of its entire surface.
D) Venus's clouds protect it from meteorites so that very few impacts occur to change its surface.
E) dust storms deposit large amount of dust on the surface, making it appear of uniform age.

Question 33

____________________ formed as Mercury cooled and shrank.

Question 34

The daytime surface temperature of Mercury is higher than Earth's moon's surface temperature because

A) clouds shield the Earth's moon during the day.
B) Mercury is farther from the sun than the Earth's moon.
C) Mercury is closer to the sun than the Earth's moon.
D) the atmosphere of the Earth's moon has a strong greenhouse effect.

Question 35

What do astronomers generally believe about the origin of Mars's moons?

A) They formed with the planet out of the protoplanetary material.
B) They formed elsewhere and were captured at a later time.
C) They were ejected from Mars during its formation.
D) They were once a single moon and a later catastrophic event broke them in two.

Question 36

Mercury's major atmospheric gas is

A) oxygen.
B) hydrogen.
C) carbon dioxide.
D) Misleading; the atmosphere is virtually nonexistent.

Question 37

Which terrestrial planet has the highest-pressure (thickest) atmosphere?

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

Question 38

Which Terrestrial planet has the combination of most rapid rotation, liquid interior, and strongest magnetic field?

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

Question 39

Most terrestrial planets have portions of their surface that appear to be significantly older than other portions of their surface. What evidence suggests that the surface of Venus is all of the same age?

A) Photos taken by probes that landed on Venus showed that all of the rocks were of the same age.
B) The craters on Venus are randomly distributed in size and number across the surface.
C) The volcanoes on Venus are not found in isolated groups, but are scattered around the planet.
D) a and b
E) all of the above

Question 40

As seen from Earth and the Hubble Space Telescope, Mars shows

A) a reddish color.
B) dark markings.
C) rotation.
D) white icy polar caps.
E) all of the above.

Question 41

Outgassing produces gas rich in carbon dioxide, nitrogen, and water vapor.

Question 42

Besides Earth, which of the terrestrial planets and/or their satellites show(s) evidence for the possible existence of liquid water flowing on its surface in the past?

Question 43

The size of Olympus Mons suggests that the crust of Mars is very thick.

Question 44

Lobate scarps are believed to have formed on Mercury when its interior cooled and shrank.

Question 45

The atmosphere of Mars primarily consists of ____________________.

Question 46

The atmosphere of ____________________ contains acid compounds including sulfuric and hydrochloric acid.

Question 47

The terrestrial planet with the oldest surface is ____________________.

Question 48

Venus is very hot because its atmosphere is rich in carbon dioxide.

Question 49

The two moons of Mars are known as ____________________ and ____________________.

Question 50

____________________ volcanoes have shallow slopes and are associated with hot spots. These types of volcanoes have been seen on the surface of Venus.

Question 51

Valles Marineris is a long valley on Mars believed to resemble the rift valleys of eastern Africa.

Question 52

Flow channels on Venus suggest it was once rich in water.

Question 53

Mercury's smooth plains are probably the oldest parts of the crust.

Question 54

The absence of folded mountain ranges on Mars suggests that it has been subjected to plate tectonics.

Question 55

The terrestrial planet with the most effective greenhouse effect is ____________________.

Question 56

The greenhouse effect occurs because carbon dioxide is opaque to infrared radiation.

Question 57

Astronomers on Earth are able to measure the rotation of Venus by using optical telescopes to watch surface markings as rotation carries them across the disk of Venus.

Question 58

We know Mercury must have a large metal core because it has a high density.

Question 59

The terrestrial planet with the most moons is ____________________.

Question 60

Radar maps of Venus show impact craters.

Question 61

The surface of Venus is hotter than the surface of Mercury.

Question 62

Why is carbon dioxide important in maintaining a greenhouse effect?

Question 63

Describe Venus's surface features which are similar to those on Earth and those which are different. Why the differences?

Question 64

How is the greenhouse effect on Venus similar to the same effect on Earth?

Question 65

Why did the atmosphere of Venus develop differently from that of Earth?

Question 66

Evaluate the evidence that Mars had a liquid water past.

Question 67

How is the rotation of Venus different from that of other terrestrial planets?

Question 68

Describe the processes that created the atmosphere of Mars during its lifetime.

Question 69

What is the difference between volcanism on Venus and that around the ring of fire on Earth?

Question 70

What factors determine the rate of loss of gases from a planet's atmosphere?

Question 71

If you went to Mars, would you have to wear a space suit? Explain why or why not.

Question 72

Venus is the planet closest to Earth in mass.

Question 73

The atmosphere on Mars is so thin that it cannot support clouds and is not at all visible in photographs taken from the surface.

Question 74

Discuss the evidence we have that the surface of Venus is marked by volcanism.

Question 75

How did the four-stage history of Venus differ from that of Earth?

Question 76

What evidence do we have that Mars once had a thicker atmosphere?

Question 77

Explain how the surfaces of the terrestrial planets are similar. In what ways are they different?

Question 78

What evidence do we have that the surface of Mars has never divided into moving plates?

Question 79

What evidence do we have that the crust of Mercury has been impacted in the past?

Question 80

Explain the differences between composite and shield volcanoes.