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Astonomy > Astronomy > Flashcards

Astronomy Flashcards

1
Q

the planet closest to the sun in the solar system

A

Mercury

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2
Q

all planets…

A

revolve around the sun in the same direction

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3
Q

terrestrial planets

A

mercury, venus, earth, mars

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4
Q

jovian planets

A

jupiter, saturn, uranis, neptune

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5
Q

what do all 4 terrestrial planets have in common

A

solid surface with geological activity on them

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6
Q

is jupiter more or less dense than earth?

A

less dense

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7
Q

compared to the mass of the sun, the mass of the earth is pretty insignificant (T/F)

A

True

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8
Q

the term “solar system” refers to the sun & everything that orbits around it (T/F)

A

True

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9
Q

more than 90% of the mass of the solar system is found in the 4 giant planets (T/F)

A

False

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10
Q

all planets in the solar system are similar in terms of what materials theyre mostly made of (T/F)

A

False

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11
Q

the 8 planets may be different in size but they all have roughly the same density (T/F)

A

False

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12
Q

The giant planets are made of much lighter (less dense) materials than the terrestrial planets (T/F)

A

True

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13
Q

comets are mostly icy chunks, while asteroids are mostly rocky chunks left over from the formation of the solar system (T/F)

A

True

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14
Q

Among the giant planets, only saturn has rings (T/F)

A

False

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15
Q

Among the terrestrial planets, earth is the smallest (T/F)

A

False

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16
Q

what planet can come closest to earth in its orbit and look brightest in our skys?

A

Venus

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17
Q

what gas makes up most of the atmosphere of Mars and Venus?

A

Carbon Dioxide

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18
Q

Why does Mars have an overall reddish color when we see its surface from afar?

A

material contains a lot of iron dioxide, the same chemistry making rusting metals look reddish

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19
Q

the planet that most resembles earth in size and internal composition

A

venus

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20
Q

what is NOT a way Venus resembles earth?

A

the thickness and pressure of its atmosphere

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21
Q

what wavelength of electromagnetic radiation would be used to examine the surface of a planet which is covered by a thick layer of clouds all the time

A

radio waves (radar)

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22
Q

why are there no smaller craters on the surface of Venus, only bigger ones?

A

Venus has a thick atmosphere all smaller chunks of material burn up before reaching the surface

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23
Q

the process by which Venus becomes so much hotter than earth is:

A

runaway greenhouse effect

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24
Q

what is one way that humans are currently making the atmosphere of earth more like venus?

A

adding carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases into the atmosphere… leading to global warming

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25
Q

A crucial difference that helps explain why Venus is so hot and the Earth isn’t is that:

A

on Venus, there was eventually no ocean to remove carbon dioxide from the atmosphere 

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26
Q

The largest volcano on Mars is called

A

Olympus Mons (Mt. Olympus)

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27
Q

One way in which Mars closely resembles the Earth is:

A

the length of its day (period of rotation)

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28
Q

Droplets of liquid water rain irrigate the surface of mars regularly (t/f)

A

False

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29
Q

What makes astronomers believe that Mars once had rivers and running water

A

Images from orbiting spacecraft reveal ancient channels that look like dried-up river beds on Earth (and our rovers show geological formations made by running water)

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30
Q

On some parts of Mars, it gets cold enough for a gas to freeze out of the atmosphere that does not freeze out by itself at the temperatures and pressures on Earth. This gas makes up some of the polar caps on Mars and is:

A

carbon dioxide

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31
Q

What factors can account for the differences in crater counts among these objects?

A

Water erosion erases some craters. Volcanic activity erases some craters. Having an atmosphere offers protection from some impacts. Plate tectonics erases some craters.

32
Q

Which of the following statements best explains why Earth has a strong magnetic field while Mars does not?

A

Mars is small; it cooled faster, so its liquid core is less molten now.

33
Q

Mars lacks oxygen in the atmosphere (t/f)

A

True

34
Q

All Jovian planets have natural satellites around them and none of the terrestrials do (t/f)

A

False

35
Q

By far the most abundant element in the giant (jovian) planets is

A

hydrogen

36
Q

The largest planet in the solar system (by mass) is

A

Jupiter

37
Q

Jupiter has enough mass to make 318 Earths. In contrast, Uranus and Neptune have only enough mass to make

A

15 Earths

38
Q

The element that can act like a metal when it is under tremendous pressure and is probably responsible for Jupiter and Saturn’s magnetism is

A

hydrogen

38
Q

The planet that orbits “on its side” (i.e. has its rotation axis parallel to the plane of its orbit) is

A

Uranus

39
Q

Astronomers believe that Jupiter’s strong magnetic field is caused by

A

a huge layer of metallic hydrogen inside Jupiter

40
Q

One reason that we have such a complex system of belts/zones/storms in Jupiter’s atmosphere is that

A

the planet rotates very rapidly

41
Q

What is the primary source of Jupiter’s internal heat?

A

Gravitational contraction

42
Q

Suppose a planet is discovered orbiting another star. Careful analysis reveals this planet’s diameter to be approximately 3 Earth diameters. Based on this figure, using our solar system as a reference model, what is its approximate mass?

A

10 Earth masses

43
Q

Each of the giant (jovian) planets have a lot more moons that any terrestrial planet

A

True

43
Q

The average temperature on planet Earth is higher than you would expect just from the heating of sunlight alone. What is the explanation for this?

A

carbon dioxide (and other gases) in the atmosphere cause a greenhouse effect

44
Q

Which part of the Earth has the greatest density?

A

core

45
Q

An increase in the Earth’s temperature by several degrees Celsius would result in

A

the melting of many glaciers, a rise in sea levels, and more flooding of towns near the coasts of the continents

46
Q

We believe the maria on the Earth’s Moon are

A

ancient impact craters in which lava beds welled up from inside the Moon

47
Q

The lunar highlands are made mostly of rocks that

A

rose to the top as the Moon cooled from a molten state early in its history

48
Q

These days the theory of the Earth’s Moon’s origin that best fits with the facts we have about the Moon is

A

a large object hit the Earth and the collision produced a filament of material that condensed to make the Moon

49
Q

The largest and most massive of Saturn’s rings is the

A

B ring

49
Q

Identify the property that distinguishes a dwarf planet from a (“major”) planet.

A

Has not cleared its orbital neighborhood of similar objects

50
Q

Saturn’s rings are made of billions of individual “moonlets” (small chunks) (t/f)

A

True

51
Q

Pluto’s big satellite is called

A

Charon

52
Q

Our modern understanding of Pluto is that it is a member of

A

the Kuiper Belt (of trans-Neptunian objects)

53
Q

Pluto has rings (t/f)

A

False

54
Q

Which substance plays the same role on Titan as water does on Earth (existing as gas, liquid, and solid)?

A

methane

55
Q

The world in the solar system that is most active volcanically is

A

Io

56
Q

The satellite whose surface is characterized by a smooth icy crust with a complex network of cracks is:

A

Europa

57
Q

A main difference between asteroids and comets is that asteroids are mostly made of rock and comets are mostly made of

A

Ice

58
Q

Which part of a comet is the DENSEST?

A

Nucleus

59
Q

Comets ALWAYS have a tail, even when far away from the sun (t/f)

A

False

60
Q

Which of the following is NOT a characteristic that worlds in our solar system have in common:

A

that all the planets have solid surfaces on which we can see impact craters

61
Q

Astronomers call the vast, rotating cloud of vapor and dust from which the solar system formed

A

a solar nebula

62
Q

Astronomers now believe that the differences in composition among the planets reflect what characteristic in the early solar system?

A

temperature

63
Q

A key difference between the protoplanets that formed in the outer solar system and those that formed in the inner solar system was that

A

those in the outer solar system were in a place where ice, not just rock, condensed and thus could grow larger 

64
Q

For solid rocky worlds, a general rule is

A

the larger the world, the slower it cools off and the more it will keep its internal heat

65
Q

Some of the early planetesimals that formed the solar system still survive today. Where would you find such planetesimals?

A

in the asteroid and Kuiper belts

66
Q

Based on the solar nebula model, why wouldn’t we expect a terrestrial planet to form in the outer solar system?

A

In the outer solar system, anything that was massive enough to form a terrestrial planet-sized object would likely have succeeded in also drawing a lot of ices and H and He to itself, producing a gas giant.

67
Q

As a cool gas cloud collapses to form a star and planetary system, it

A

Speeds up its rotation and flattens

68
Q

Our solar system is believed to have formed following the collapse of a

A

Giant gas cloud

69
Q

Venus has a thick cloud containing sulfuric acid droplets (t/f)

A

True

70
Q

What features are abundant on Callisto and Ganymede

A

Impact craters

71
Q

Pluto is a member of…

A

Kuiper Belt

72
Q

Gravity of the comet nucleus holds on the evaporated material and it freezes back into the nucleus (t/f)

A

False

73
Q

Astronomers were surprised to find this in the Kuiper Belt

A

Larger bodies, with sizes as big as Pluto (now called dwarf planets)

74
Q

Asteroids are round (t/f)

A

False

Astonomy (2 decks)

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