Deck 17: The Solar System

Question 1

Meteorites never contain

A)iron.
B)nickel.
C)silicate minerals.
D)limestone fragments.

Answer 1

limestone fragments.

Question 2

When visibility is good and there are no meteor showers, it is possible to see about 5 to 10 meteors per

A)minute.
B)hour.
C)night.
D)week.

Answer 2

hour.

Question 3

The two planets of the solar system that do not have satellites are

A)Mercury and Venus.
B)Mars and Saturn.
C)Jupiter and Neptune.
D)Neptune and Uranus.

Answer 3

Mercury and Venus.

Question 4

The planet with the shortest year is

A)Mercury.
B)Jupiter.
C)Saturn.
D)Neptune.

Question 5

Meteor showers occur

A)at the same times each year.
B)at random times.
C)in connection with solar eclipses.
D)in connection with lunar eclipses.

Question 6

Of the following planets, the one with the most satellites is

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

Question 7

Comet tails

A)are longest near the sun.
B)are shortest near the sun.
C)are of constant length.
D)point away from their direction of motion.

Question 8

The solar wind

A)blows over the sun's surface.
B)consists of photons streaming from the sun.
C)consists of ions streaming from the sun.
D)consists of hydrogen atoms streaming from the sun.

Question 9

Most of the mass in the solar system is located in

A)the asteroids.
B)the sun.
C)Jupiter and Saturn.
D)Uranus and Neptune.

Question 10

Compared to the inner planets, the outer planets

A)are denser.
B)rotate more rapidly on their axes.
C)have lower escape speeds.
D)contain relatively less matter in gaseous form.

Question 11

The least dense of the following planets is

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

Question 12

Which of the following is not one of the inner planets?

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

Question 13

Comets consist of

A)leftover matter from the early solar system.
B)the debris of a shattered planet.
C)luminous gases.
D)particles from the solar wind.

Question 14

The planet with the longest year is

A)Mercury.
B)Jupiter.
C)Saturn.
D)Neptune.

Question 15

A planet with two satellites is

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

Question 16

The planet having a period of rotation nearest the earth's is

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

Question 17

The largest known meteorite has a mass of

A)5.5 kg.
B)55 kg.
C)550 kg.
D)55,000 kg.

Question 18

The Oort Cloud, which lies outside the orbit of Neptune, consists mainly of

A)comets.
B)meteoroids.
C)asteroids.
D)various gases.

Question 19

The planets are visible because

A)their atmospheres are excited to luminescence by the solar wind.
B)they are not hot enough to radiate light.
C)they reflect sunlight.
D)they reflect starlight.

Question 20

Meteoroids

A)follow orbits around the earth.
B)follow orbits around the sun.
C)move randomly through the solar system.
D)come from outside the solar system.

Question 21

Of the following planets, the one with the thinnest atmosphere is

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

Question 22

The asteroids are probably similar in composition to

A)stony meteorites.
B)iron meteorites.
C)comets.
D)Jupiter.

Question 23

Meteor craters are observed on the surface of which of the following?

A)Mercury
B)Venus
C)Mars
D)the moon
E)All of the above

Question 24

Polar ice caps are found on

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

Question 25

The Great Red Spot is an atmospheric disturbance occurring on the planet

A)Mars.
B)Neptune.
C)Saturn.
D)Jupiter.

Question 26

All known dwarf planets

A)are smaller than the moon.
B)are approximately spherical.
C)follow elliptical orbits around the sun.
D)have satellites.
E)Both A, B and C

Question 27

The surface of Mars does not contain

A)active volcanoes.
B)meteor craters.
C)deserts of sand.
D)signs of surface water in the past.

Question 28

The planet with the largest satellite is

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

Question 29

Of the following members of the solar system, the one that never exhibits phases to us is

A)the moon.
B)Mercury.
C)Venus.
D)Mars.

Question 30

Asteroids are found

A)spread evenly throughout the solar system.
B)mainly in a belt between the earth and the moon.
C)mainly in a belt between the earth and Mars.
D)mainly in a belt between Mars and Jupiter.

Question 31

Traces of life are being sought on a satellite of which of the following planets?

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

Question 32

Of the following planets, the least conspicuous in the sky is

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

Question 33

The spacecraft that landed on Mars found

A)signs of life.
B)liquid water.
C)a dense atmosphere.
D)lava flows.

Question 34

The largest known asteroid is about as far across as

A)New York City.
B)Texas.
C)the United States.
D)the moon.

Question 35

Venus is very unlikely to support life because

A)it has no atmosphere.
B)its escape speed is too low.
C)its surface is too cold.
D)its surface is too hot.

Question 36

The surface of Jupiter's satellite Europa may be covered by

A)vegetation.
B)metallic hydrogen.
C)the highest volcanoes in the solar system.
D)a layer of water ice floating on liquid water.

Question 37

Asteroids

A)are fragments of a planet that broke up.
B)are approximately spherical.
C)may be solid, liquid, or gaseous.
D)sometimes have satellites.

Question 38

Planetary rings

A)are thin sheets of rock.
B)are gas clouds.
C)consist of small chunks of rock and ice.
D)are more than 100 km thick.

Question 39

A planet that has no rings around it is

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

Question 40

A planet that consists largely of compressed gases is

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

Question 41

Relative to the oldest rocks that have been found on the moon, the oldest rocks found on the earth are

A)younger.
B)about the same age.
C)somewhat older.
D)very much older.

Question 42

The moon has an abundance of

A)atmospheric gases.
B)water.
C)ice.
D)craters.

Question 43

An eclipse of the sun can occur

A)only when the moon passes directly between the earth and the sun.
B)only when the sun passes directly between the earth and the moon.
C)only when the earth passes directly between the sun and the moon.
D)at any time.

Question 44

The interior of the moon

A)is uniform in structure.
B)has a liquid core.
C)is relatively cool.
D)is active geologically, giving rise to severe moonquakes.

Question 45

The maria of the moon

A)are found only on the hemisphere that faces the earth.
B)are found only on the hemisphere that faces away from the earth.
C)are found everywhere on the moon's surface.
D)regularly change size and shape.

Question 46

The durations of "day" and "night" at a given place on the moon each correspond to about

A)1 day on earth.
B)1 week on earth.
C)2 weeks on earth.
D)4 weeks on earth.

Question 47

In the past 3 billion years the main influence on the lunar landscape has been

A)volcanoes.
B)moonquakes.
C)meteoroid impacts.
D)running water.

Question 48

If the moon were smaller than it is, total eclipses of the moon would

A)never occur.
B)occur less often than now.
C)occur as often as now.
D)occur more often than now.

Question 49

If the moon were smaller than it is, total eclipses of the sun would

A)never occur.
B)occur less often than now.
C)occur as often as now.
D)occur more often than now.

Question 50

A full moon is visible

A)only during the day.
B)only until midnight.
C)only after midnight.
D)all night.

Question 51

At full moon, the moon is

A)between the earth and the sun.
B)on the opposite side of the earth from the sun.
C)on the opposite side of the sun from the earth.
D)not in line with the earth and the sun.

Question 52

The maria of the moon are covered with

A)water.
B)hard, smooth rock.
C)dark, loose soil.
D)frozen carbon dioxide.