Deck 8: Mars

Question 1

Due to its elliptical orbit, Mars is farther from the Sun on average during winter in the Southern Hemisphere. This means Southern Winter on Mars will be

A) long and mild
B) short and hot
C) long and cold
D) short and mild

Answer 1

long and cold

Question 2

Due to its elliptical orbit, Mars is farther from the Sun on average during summer in the Northern Hemisphere. This means Northern Summer on Mars will be

A) long and mild
B) short and hot
C) long and hot
D) short and mild

Answer 2

long and mild

Question 3

What did the Martian surface look like from the Viking lander sites?

A) a dry, dusty, boulder-strewn desert
B) a huge canyon stretching out to the horizon
C) flat, dark volcanic rocks out to the horizon
D) very mountainous with huge volcanoes in the distance

Answer 3

a dry, dusty, boulder-strewn desert

Question 4

The atmosphere of Mars is made mostly of

A) nitrogen
B) carbon dioxide
C) hydrocarbons
D) ammonia

Question 5

Due to its elliptical orbit, Mars is closer to the Sun on average during winter in the Northern Hemisphere. This means Northern Winter on Mars will be

A) short and hot
B) long and mild
C) long and cold
D) short and mild

Question 6

The first person to claim to see linear features on the surface of Mars was

A) Angelo Secchi
B) Percival Lowell
C) Giovanni Schiaparelli
D) William Herschel

Question 7

The first rover to explore Mars in 1997 was called

A) Opportunity
B) Spirit
C) Sojourner
D) Curiosity

Question 8

The public debate about Martian canals was not resolved until

A) many scientists were unable to reproduce Percival Lowell's sketches of Martian canals
B) the governing body of astronomy, the International Astronomical Union made an official statement on the matter
C) the first spacecraft flew past Mars in 1965
D) the first spacecraft landed on Mars in 1976

Question 9

Who was the one of the first scientists to suggest that Mars may be inhabited?

A) William Herschel
B) Percival Lowell
C) Giovanni Schiaparelli
D) Angelo Secchi

Question 10

Compared to the atmospheric pressure at sea level on Earth, the atmospheric pressure on Mars is

A) about the same
B) just slightly lower
C) much higher
D) much lower

Question 11

Seasonal variations on Mars are due

A) only to its changing distance from the Sun
B) only to its axis tilt
C) to changes in the amounts of energy emitted by the Sun
D) both to its axis tilt and its changing distance from the Sun

Question 12

When Percival Lowell insisted on the existence of Martian canals, even though his observations were discredited by other scientists, he exhibited

A) objectivity
B) stupidity
C) insanity
D) personal bias

Question 13

Seasons on Mars

A) are similar to those on the Earth but are nearly twice as long
B) are exactly the same at the Earth
C) are more intense than on the Earth but the same length
D) are similar to those on the Earth but half as long

Question 14

Due to its elliptical orbit, Mars is closer to the Sun on average during summer in the Southern Hemisphere. This means Southern Summer on Mars will be

A) short and hot
B) long and hot
C) long and mild
D) short and mild

Question 15

Compared to the average surface temperature on the surface of the Earth, the average surface temperature on the surface of Mars is

A) about the same
B) much lower
C) just slightly lower
D) much higher

Question 16

A future astronaut exploring Mars would

A) need to stay inside a spacecraft at all times
B) be able to walk on the surface at any time wearing only warm clothing
C) need to wear a spacesuit at all times
D) need to wear a spacesuit only during the winter

Question 17

Other astronomers were skeptical about Percival Lowell's claims of Martian canals because

A) it did not seem possible for his telescope to see the surface through its thick atmosphere
B) they discovered that Lowell suffered from poor vision
C) they were able to prove that Lowell's telescope was faulty
D) when they pointed their own telescopes toward Mars they couldn't see them

Question 18

How easy would it be for future astronauts to psychologically adapt to living on Mars?

A) fairly easy because the Martian day is only about 40 minutes longer than the terrestrial day
B) extremely easy because the Martian day is exactly the same length as the terrestrial day
C) very difficult because the Martian day is much longer than the terrestrial day
D) very difficult because the Martian day is much shorter than the terrestrial day

Question 19

What color does the planet Mars appear to the naked eye in the sky?

A) yellow
B) white
C) blue
D) red

Question 20

Liquid water cannot exist for very long on the surface of Mars today because

A) it gets rapidly destroyed by intense solar radiation
B) its surface temperature is too high
C) it rapidly reacts with the Martian surface to form peroxides
D) its atmosphere is too thin

Question 21

The Southern hemisphere of Mars is at

A) an average elevation and is covered with impact craters
B) a higher than average elevation and is relatively smooth
C) a higher than average elevation and is covered with impact craters
D) a lower than average elevation and is relatively smooth

Question 22

What is one hypothesis for why the crust in the northern hemisphere of Mars is thinner and lower than that in the southern hemisphere?

A) a giant impact blasted away crust from the northern hemisphere
B) it once hosted an ocean of water which eroded away the crust
C) tectonic activity caused the southern hemisphere to rise up above the level of the northern hemisphere
D) massive "marsquakes" caused the northern hemisphere to subside

Question 23

The Northern hemisphere of Mars is at

A) a higher than average elevation and is covered with impact craters
B) a higher than average elevation and is relatively smooth
C) an average elevation and is covered with impact craters
D) a lower than average elevation and is relatively smooth

Question 24

Significant amounts of liquid water last existed on the surface of Mars during the

A) Noachian Era
B) Amazonian Era
C) Hadean Era
D) Hesperian Era

Question 25

The most recent time that water appears to have flowed on Mars, if only briefly, is during the

A) Amazonian Era
B) Hadean Era
C) Noachian Era
D) Hesperian Era

Question 26

Typically, what color is the Martian sky during in the morning and evenings?

A) green
B) yellow-brown
C) red
D) blue

Question 27

The middle era of the geological history of Mars is called the

A) Noachian
B) Hesperian
C) Amazonian
D) Phanerozonian

Question 28

During winter, the northern polar cap of Mars is made of

A) a layer of carbon dioxide ice
B) a layer of water ice
C) carbon dioxide ice overlaying water ice
D) water ice overlaying carbon dioxide ice

Question 29

Typically, what color is the Martian sky during the daytime?

A) green
B) yellow-brown
C) red
D) blue

Question 30

An image of Mars taken with the Hubble Space Telescope shows a small Northern polar cap and a large Southern Polar cap. What season is it in the Northern hemisphere?

A) spring
B) fall
C) summer
D) winter

Question 31

Compared to the summer, the atmospheric pressure above a Martian polar cap in winter is

A) lower
B) about the same
C) slightly higher
D) much higher

Question 32

The southern highlands of Mars date to which geological era?

A) Amazonian
B) Hesperian
C) Cenozoic
D) Noachian

Question 33

The residual polar caps on Mars are made of

A) carbon dioxide ice
B) methane ice
C) water ice
D) a uniform mixture of water and carbon dioxide ices

Question 34

The seasonal polar caps which appear and disappear with the seasons on Mars are made of

A) methane ice
B) carbon dioxide ice
C) water ice
D) a uniform mixture of water and carbon dioxide ices

Question 35

During summer, the northern polar cap of Mars is made of

A) carbon dioxide ice overlaying water ice
B) a layer of carbon dioxide ice
C) a layer of water ice
D) water ice overlaying carbon dioxide ice

Question 36

Which of the following do winds on Mars NOT cause

A) global dust storms
B) local dust storms
C) hurricanes
D) dust devils

Question 37

The geological history of Mars is divided into different

A) eons
B) eras
C) periods
D) epochs

Question 38

During summer in the Southern hemisphere of Mars, winds travel

A) from the South Pole to the North Pole
B) around the South Pole
C) from the North Pole to the South Pole
D) around the equator

Question 39

What are the relative ages of the heavily cratered Southern highlands and the smooth Northern plains of Mars?

A) the highlands and the plains are the same age
B) it is impossible to tell unless we know the specific geological processes that occurred in each hemisphere
C) the plains are older than the highlands
D) the highlands are older than the plains

Question 40

During winter at a particular pole on Mars, some of the carbon dioxide in the atmosphere

A) freezes out onto the surface
B) escapes into space
C) condenses into liquid on the surface
D) is destroyed by ultraviolet radiation from the Sun

Question 41

The erosion features seen from orbit on the surface of Mars appears to have been formed from

A) running water
B) molten lava
C) wind
D) marsquakes

Question 42

Spectra of the Martian surface taken from orbiting spacecraft have detected the presence of which of the following minerals that form in water?

A) hydrated clays, sulfates and silicates
B) limestones
C) zircons
D) sea and rock salts

Question 43

Which of the following is not a Mars rover?

A) Spirit
B) Sojourner
C) Curiosity
D) Viking

Question 44

The most important geological process occurring on Mars today is

A) water erosion
B) plate tectonics
C) volcanism
D) wind erosion

Question 45

Martian volcanoes are larger than volcanoes on Earth because

A) Mars's weaker gravity makes it easier for tall structures to be built up.
B) the lack of plate tectonics on Mars means that mantle plumes remain stationary relative to the surface, building up huge, single mountains.
C) Mars has more internal heat than the Earth so volcanoes naturally grow to much larger sizes
D) Both A and B

Question 46

In the Tharsis region of Mars we find

A) a huge impact basin
B) heavily cratered highlands
C) smooth rolling plains
D) huge shield volcanoes like Olympus Mons

Question 47

The most important geological process that has removed craters from the northern plains of Mars is

A) plate tectonics
B) wind erosion
C) volcanism
D) water erosion

Question 48

The ancient water erosion features on the surface of Mars suggest that the planet must have had a much

A) warmer, thinner atmosphere in the past
B) cooler, thicker atmosphere in the past
C) cooler, thinner atmosphere in the past
D) warmer, thicker atmosphere in the past

Question 49

The volcano Olympus Mons on Mars is

A) taller than Mt. Everest and as large as the state of Arizona
B) smaller than Mt. Everest but as large as North America
C) taller than Mt. Everest and but only as large as the Big Island of Hawaii
D) about the same height and size as Mt. St. Helens in Washington State, USA

Question 50

Approximately how old are the erosion channels seen on the surface of Mars?

A) 3 billion years
B) 4.6 billion years
C) 1 billion years
D) 500 million years

Question 51

Where is probably the best place to find life on Mars today?

A) inside craters that used to be filled with water
B) in the Mariner Valley
C) in the residual polar caps
D) in geologically active areas like Tharsis where subsurface water may exist

Question 52

Gale Crater is the site of exploration for which Mars rover?

A) Spirit
B) Opportunity
C) Curiosity
D) Sojourner

Question 53

The number of impact craters on the slopes of Tharsis volcanoes suggests that they have been inactive

A) since Mars formed 4.6 billion years ago
B) for at least a billion years
C) for at least tens of millions of years
D) only for the last few hundred years

Question 54

What method has been used to determine the most recent time the Tharsis volcanoes on Mars have erupted?

A) measuring the thickness of lava flows on their sides
B) measuring the intensity of infrared radiation emitted by them
C) measuring the changes in sulfur compound concentrations in the planet's atmosphere
D) counting the craters on their slopes

Question 55

Martian "blueberries" made of the mineral hematite which form in water were first discovered by which Mars rover?

A) Spirit
B) Opportunity
C) Curiosity
D) Sojourner

Question 56

What is the most likely origin of the Valles Marineris on Mars?

A) it is a fissure in the surface carved out by a giant impact
B) it is a tectonic fracture associated with the formation of the adjacent Tharsis bulge
C) it is a huge canyon system formed by water erosion
D) it was formed from the separation of two tectonic plates

Question 57

Valles Marineris on Mars is

A) about as long and deep as the Grand Canyon on the Earth
B) much longer and deeper than the Grand Canyon on Earth
C) much shorter and shallower than the Grand Canyon on Earth
D) much longer but not as deep as the Grand Canyon on Earth

Question 58

The Tharsis region of Mars was most likely formed

A) from sediment that piled up due to past water erosion
B) by plate tectonics
C) by a plume of molten mantle material rising to the surface forming a bulge
D) from compressions in the Martian crust as the planet cooled and contracted

Question 59

The origin of the erosion features seen on the surface of Mars appears to be due to

A) runoff after rainfall
B) erosion by water-rich debris flows
C) an underground source
D) one or more of these

Question 60

What evidence from the careful examination of impact craters provides evidence that Mars had surface water long ago?

A) indistinct rims of many large craters due to water erosion
B) lack of small craters which would have been erased by ancient rainfall
C) channels where water once flowed between crater lakes
D) all of these

Question 61

It is believed that the planet Mars has a much thicker carbon dioxide atmosphere in the past than it does today. Where the bulk of this carbon dioxide go?

A) it reacted with surface rocks
B) it condensed to form the polar caps
C) it was destroyed in the atmosphere through chemical reactions
D) it was lost into space

Question 62

The lack of any obvious source for many outflow channels on Mars suggests that the water originated from

A) underground
B) the atmosphere in the form of rain
C) ancient melting glaciers
D) the atmosphere in the form of snow

Question 63

Even though the Martian atmosphere is composed almost completely of the greenhouse gas carbon dioxide, its surface is much colder than the Earth because its

A) atmosphere is much thinner
B) surface does not radiate any infrared radiation
C) atmosphere contains equal amounts of gases which neutralize the greenhouse effect
D) polar caps are much larger than on the Earth

Question 64

In 2008 the Phoenix spacecraft landed in the Martian arctic and found water ice

A) on the surface
B) deep beneath the surface
C) just below the surface
D) was nowhere to be found

Question 65

Which of the following did NOT contribute to the thinning of the Martian atmosphere during its early history?

A) the photodissociation of water molecules by ultraviolet light in the atmosphere
B) the stripping of the atmosphere by solar wind particles from the Sun
C) the consumption of carbon dioxide by photosynthetic bacteria
D) atmospheric gases being blasted into space by large impacts

Question 66

What field of science are the experiments on the two Mars Rovers Sojourner, Spirit, Opportunity and Curiosity most closely related to?

A) physics
B) biology
C) geology
D) astronomy

Question 67

Compared to the Earth, Mars has experienced wild swings in its axis tilt over relatively short time periods. This is because of its

A) proximity to Jupiter and its lack of a large moon
B) greater distance from the Sun
C) slower rotation rate
D) small size

Question 68

For water to have been stable on Mars in the past,

A) temperature must have been higher and the atmospheric pressure lower
B) temperature must have been lower and the atmospheric pressure higher
C) both the temperature and the atmospheric pressure must have been higher
D) both the temperature and the atmospheric pressure must have been lower

Question 69

When the Martian axis tilt is large, the Martian poles

A) expand and remain permanently frozen, thinning the atmosphere
B) contract and partially vaporize, thickening the atmosphere
C) extend over the entire surface of the planet
D) completely disappear

Question 70

Which Mars orbiter has been measuring the escape of gases from the Martian atmosphere?

A) Mars Express
B) Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter
C) Mars Orbiter Mission
D) MAVEN

Question 71

When the Martian axis tilt is small, the Martian poles

A) expand and remain permanently frozen, thinning the atmosphere
B) contract and partially vaporize, thickening the atmosphere
C) extend over the entire surface of the planet
D) completely disappear

Question 72

The extent to which Mars has been habitable essentially boils down to the

A) question of whether liquid water has ever been present on its surface
B) question of whether oceans of liquid water have existed on its surface
C) amount of water that has been present on its surface
D) length of time liquid water has been present at or below its surface

Question 73

Isotopic evidence for the presence significant quantities of liquid water on Mars in the past comes from the observation of

A) an elevated ratio of deuterium to hydrogen
B) an elevated ratio of hydrogen to deuterium
C) a complete absence of hydrogen in the atmosphere
D) a complete absence of deuterium in the atmosphere

Question 74

The Earth's axis tilt has changed little over its history due to

A) the stabilizing effects of Jupiter's gravity
B) the stabilizing effects of the Sun's gravity
C) the stabilizing effects of the Moon's gravity
D) its rapid rotation

Question 75

At the Mars Pathfinder landing site, the surrounding rocks are scattered and stacked against each other. This suggests that the spacecraft landed in

A) an area of explosive volcanic activity
B) an ancient floodplain
C) an area subjected to wind erosion
D) the debris from a giant impact

Question 76

Some features on Mars attributed to flooding may have been caused by temporary heating events like

A) impacts
B) volcanic eruptions
C) lightning
D) Both A and B

Question 77

What evidence supports the hypothesis for a vast, deep ocean which once occupied what is now the northern plains of Mars?

A) many of the largest flood channels appear to have drained into the northern plains
B) geographic features that look like ancient shorelines
C) that the rock along the proposed shoreline is sedimentary rather than volcanic
D) all of these are evidence

Question 78

Evidence for very recent water erosion on Mars comes from the observations of

A) dark streaks on crater walls
B) channels carved on the slopes of volcanoes
C) dried up river beds on the highlands
D) mud flows surrounding craters

Question 79

The presence of channels carved out on the slopes of Martian volcanoes is consistent with

A) recent wind erosion
B) the action of plate tectonics
C) the existence of past underground pockets of water
D) recent impacts

Question 80

The most important factor which contributed to the thinning of the Martian atmosphere was probably the

A) blasting of gas into space by impacts
B) loss of the planet's protective magnetic field as it rapidly cooled
C) chemical reactions with surface rocks
D) formation of the polar caps