Astronomy: Chapter 13

Question 1

Describe the interior structure of the earth. Use a labeled diagram.

Answer 1

• Earths crust is dense.
• Its mantle is made of Olivine [(Mg, Fe) SiO4]
• Its liquid core is Iron and Nickel
• Its solid core is Iron and Nickel.

Question 2

Discuss the process of differentiation, and how we can know about the interior of the earth.

Answer 2

• Differentiation is the separation of material by density.
• For example; the many layers of the crust for the earth separate depending on how dense they are.
• When the planet melted, the heavy metals such as iron and nickel settled to the core, while the lighter silicates floated to the surface to form a low density crust.

Question 3

What is the evidence for continental drift and the main elements of the plate tectonic theory?

Answer 3

• Continental drift: Proof was found by Wegner. He discovered it through rock specimen similarities.
• Glomar Challenger: mapped the ridges of the earth and also found samples of the core that showed seafloor spreading.
• Plate Tectonic theory: Earth’s crust is divided into moving sections called plates. Where plates spread apart, lava wells up to form new crust; where plates push against each other, they crumple the crust to form mountains. Where one plate slides over another, you see volcanism.

Question 4

Describe the chief categories of rocks found on earth: their properties and formation.

Answer 4

• Igneous: minerals forming and fusing together after being melted.
  
  • Granite, Pumice, Basalt, Obisidian
• Metamorphic: minerals reforming and fusing together with heat, pressure, and time.
  
  • Marble, Slate, quartzite, mica schist, chlorite schist
• Sedimentary: minerals cemented together with pressure and time.
  
  • Limestone, Sandstone, Shale, Conglomerate

Question 5

What three conditions must be met in order for a planet to generate a magnetic field?

Answer 5

the planet or moon must have a fluid interior, a rapid rotation, and electrical conductor

Question 6

Explain the cause and possible consequences of a depletion of earth’s ozone layer.

Answer 6

• If the earth’s ozone were to be removed, we would have nothing to protect us from the harmful UV protons. It is important to avoid using things that release CFC’s because they destroy our ozone layer.

caused by man-made clorofluorcarbons (CFC’s).

Question 7

Explain the concept of global warming and describe the possible causes and consequences.

Answer 7

Global warming is the gradual increase in the surface temperature of earth cause by human modifications to earth’s atmosphere.

Caused by an excessive amount of CO2 concentration, which in turn causes the Green house effect and the temperature rising.

Polar ice caps melt, which causes coastal cities to flood, endangering certain species.

Question 8

Name the various types of surface features on the moon and discuss their nature and origin.

Answer 8

• Cratering: caused by impacts of celestial bodies like meteorites
• Lunar lowlands: dark seas that are smooth such as maria or mare
• Highlands: bright mountainous areas which are rough
• Mare is latin for sea
• Oceanus is latin for ocean.

tycho, sea of serenity, sea of rains, sea of tranquility, oceanus procellum, Mare humorum, mare nubium

Question 9

Sketch a labeled map of the Moon, showing the proper names of the most prominent surface features.

Answer 9

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Question 10

Discuss the pros and cons of three major theories of the origin of the moon, including the current theory.

Answer 10

• Fission Hypothesis: moon broke off from rapidly spinning proto-earth.
• Condensation hypothesis: moon and earth condensed from the same cloud of matter.
• Large-impact hypothesis: a plantismal smashed into proto-earth, then ejected debris into a disk around earth, where it formed the moon.

Question 11

Describe the appearance of the far side of the moon and explain why it is different from the near side.

Answer 11

• The far side of the moon has minimal craters, no lunar seas, and the Orientalis (impact Basin)

Question 12

Discuss the main purposes of the American Ranger, Orbiter, Surveyor, and Apollo space projects.

Answer 12

American Orbiter: to obtain high-resolution images of the lunar surface. Purpose was to locate smooth, level areas of the moon’s nearside to confirm the areas as suitable for manned landing sites for the apollo program.

Ranger: to crash into the moon. Meant to obtain information on the lunar surface

Apollo: to put a man on the moon
Surveyor:

Surveyor Program: demonstrate the feasibility soft landing on the moon.

Question 13

Describe several types of rocks found on the moon.

Answer 13

• Breccia: volcanic rocks indicate presence of volcanoes
• Vesicular basalt
• Pumice stone
• anorthosite

Question 14

In what ways is Mercury like the moon? What two kinds of surface features on Mercury are not found as much on the moon? Discuss their possible origins.

Answer 14

• like the moon, mercury is also heavily cratered, has no air, no atmosphere.
• • Caloris Basin and the Weird Terrain.
• It is said that an impact formed the caloris basin which thereby created the weird terrain on the other side of mercury. The shock sent seismic waves through the core until it reached the other end.
• Long Scarps or wrinkles are found on the crust and the tops of craters.

Question 15

Discuss Mercury’s size, orbit, and rotation.

Answer 15

• Size: 1/3 the size of earth
• Orbit: ~88 days
• Rotation: ~ 58 days

Question 16

Name two particular (proper-name) surface features on Mercury and discuss evidence for their causal relationship.

Answer 16

• Caloris Basin and the Weird Terrain.
• It is said that an impact formed the caloris basin which thereby created the weird terrain on the other side of mercury. The shock sent seismic waves through the core until it reached the other end.

Question 17

Describe the appearance of Venus

Answer 17

(a) as seen through a telescope from the earth;
- Venus appears as a white dot
(b) as seen in photographs using ultraviolet light;
- Venus has many cloud patterns
(c) as seen in photographs taken by the Russian Venera landers.
- Venus has fresh rocks and a earthy terrain

Question 18

What is meant by the “runaway greenhouse effect” that makes Venus so hot? How does it work?

Answer 18

• A greenhouse effect so dramatic that it amplifies itself, becoming stronger with time.
• It traps heat inside

Question 19

Describe the atmosphere of Venus.

Answer 19

• The air is unbreathable, very hot, and very dense.
• The atmosphere is roughly 96 percent carbon dioxide. The rest is mostly nitrogen, sulfuric acid, hydrochloric acid, and hydrofluoric acid.
• There is a tiny amount of water vapor.
• It is 90 times denser than the earth’s.
• More severe version of the greenhouse effect.
• Cloudy, thick winds, 900 degrees F, and sulfuric acid rain.

Question 20

Sketch a labeled map of the surface of Venus showing the proper names of the most prominent surface features.

Answer 20

• Corona- a group of round cracks
• Arachnoids – spider like corona
• Volcanoes – lava flow
• Craters – wind streaks
• Sights
  
  • Ishtar Mountains
  • Lakshmi Plains

Question 21

Describe the appearance and origin of several types of surface features found on Venus.

Answer 21

• 85 percent of venus is covered by basaltic lowlands
  
  • Volcanic flows have produced long, sinuous channels extending for hundreds or kilometers.
• Venus has two large highland areas:
  
  • Ishtar Terra, about the size of Australia, in the north polar region
  • Aphrodite Terra, about the size of south America, straddling the equator and extending for almost 10,000 km (6,000 miles).
  • Maxwell montes , the highest mountain on venus and comparable to mount Everest on earth, is at the eastern edge of Ishtar Terra.
• Surface features: aine corona, about 200 km in diameter, is marked by faults, lava flows, small volcanic domes, and pancake domes of solidified lava.

Question 22

Describe the appearance and origin of several types of surface features found on Mars.

Answer 22

• enormous Shield Volcanoes: they look like shields. the largest volcano on mars is called “Olympus Mons”
  
  • Olympus Mons is 600 km across its base and 25 km about the surrounding plain.
• absence of Plate Tectonics: there is no evidence on mars for a large scale plate tectonics as we find them on earth.
• Large Canyon Systems: The largest is Valles Marineris, which extends for about 5000 km, is 500 km wide in the widest portions, and as much as 6km deep.
• running water erosion: channels on mars as much as 1500 km long and 200 km wide that appear to have been cut by running. water.
• wind Erosion: Dust storms.
• polar caps: they appear to be partially composed of frozen carbon dioxide (dry ice) and partially composed of water.

Question 23

Discuss the observational evidence for the presence of water on Mars in the past.

Answer 23

• Liquid water cannot survive on the surface of Mars because the air pressure is too low: any liquid water would immediately boil away.
• The polar caps appear to be composed of frozen water ice coated over by frozen carbon dioxide (dry ice).
• Whatever water is present on mars is frozen either witin the polar caps or as permafrost in the soil.
• Permafrost: permanently frozen soil.
• Hematite: is the mineral form of a type of iron oxide that is usually near standing water and hot springs. This was found on some rocks on the moon.

Question 24

Sketch a labeled map of the surface of Mars, showing the proper names of the most prominent surface features.

Answer 24

• Southern hemisphere: heavily crated highland region up to 4 billion years old.
• Northern Hemisphere: mostly younger lowland plain with few craters.
  i. Tharsis region: a highland region of volcanoes and lava flows bulging 6 miles above the surrounding surface.
  ii. Elysium region: more heavily created and eroded and appears to be older than the tharsis buldge. Uplifed volcanic plain.

Question 25

Name and describe the moons of Mars.

Answer 25

Mars has two moon. They are most likely captures astroids. They are odd shaped.

Phobos and Deimos

The moons are small and irregular shape.

Phobos has a massive crater called “Stickney”

Question 26

Discuss the possibility of the presence of life on Mars, today or in the past.

Answer 26

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Question 27

Earth: P waves and S waves.

Answer 27

Waves that cause earthquakes.
P waves is the primary wave, which are pressure waves.
S wave is what we actually feel. waves can travel through the outer core and S waves cant. This lets us know that the outer core is a liquid.