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Earth Focus > Capter 10: Planet Formation, Cores to Atmospheres > Flashcards

Capter 10: Planet Formation, Cores to Atmospheres Flashcards

part 1

1
Q

What are the terrestrial planets in our solar system?

A

Mercury, Venus, Earth, Mars

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2
Q

What are the Jovian planets in our solar system?

A

Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, Neptune

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3
Q

What separates the terrestrial and Jovian planets?

A

The asteroid belt

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4
Q

What is the Kuiper Belt composed of?

A

Icy bodies and comets beyond Neptune

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5
Q

What is the Oort Cloud?

A

A distant spherical cloud of comets surrounding the solar system

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6
Q

What is Mercury’s atmosphere composed of?

A

Mercury has no atmosphere

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7
Q

What dominates Venus’s atmosphere?

A

Carbon dioxide (CO₂) and nitrogen (N₂)

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8
Q

What is unique about Earth’s atmosphere?

A

It is composed of molecular nitrogen (N₂) and oxygen (O₂)

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9
Q

What are the primary gases in Mars’s atmosphere?

A

Carbon dioxide (CO₂) and nitrogen (N₂)

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10
Q

Which planet has the highest density among the terrestrial planets?

A

Earth

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11
Q

What gases dominate the atmospheres of Jovian planets?

A

Hydrogen (H₂) and helium (He)

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12
Q

Which Jovian planet has the largest mass?

A

Jupiter

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13
Q

How is helium unique in the context of planetary atmospheres?

A

Helium is chemically inert and does not contribute to planetary core formation

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14
Q

Approximately how old is the solar system?

A

4.6 billion years

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15
Q

What triggered the collapse of the solar nebula?

A

Gravitational energy and conservation of angular momentum

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16
Q

What percentage of the solar system’s mass is contained in the Sun?

A

99.8%

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17
Q

Where is most of the angular momentum in the solar system located?

A

In the rotation and revolution of the Jovian planets

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18
Q

What process clears excess angular momentum from the Sun’s disk?

A

Solar winds and magnetic field interactions

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19
Q

What are planetesimals?

A

Small rocky or icy bodies that coalesced to form planets

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20
Q

At what distance from the Sun does the “snowline” occur?

A

Approximately 2 AU

21
Q

What materials dominate terrestrial planet formation?

A

Heavy elements like iron, nickel, and silicates

22
Q

What enabled Jovian planets to accrete massive atmospheres?

A

Their gravitational pull and proximity to the gaseous outer disk

23
Q

What theory explains Jupiter’s migration during the solar system’s formation?

A

The Grand Tack Model

24
Q

How was water delivered to the terrestrial planets?

A

By icy planetesimals from the outer solar system

25
Q

What role did Jupiter play in delivering icy planetesimals?

A

Its migration scattered icy planetesimals toward the terrestrial region

26
Q

What primary gases formed Earth’s early atmosphere?

A

Carbon dioxide (CO₂) and water vapor (H₂O)

27
Q

When did Earth’s oceans begin to form?

A

Between 4.1 and 3.8 billion years ago

28
Q

What is the Late Heavy Bombardment?

A

A period of frequent impacts from asteroids and comets

29
Q

What did the Late Heavy Bombardment contribute to Earth?

A

Additional water and volatile elements

30
Q

Why is Venus unable to retain large oceans like Earth?

A

Its high atmospheric pressure and proximity to the Sun

31
Q

What is the average temperature on Mercury?

A

676°F

32
Q

What materials dominate the asteroid belt?

A

Iron, nickel, rock, and some silicates

33
Q

What percentage of Earth’s mass is nitrogen and oxygen?

A

A majority of the atmospheric composition

34
Q

How do comets differ in the Kuiper Belt versus the Oort Cloud?

A

Kuiper Belt comets have more water and volatile ices

35
Q

What are Jovian planets?

A

Gas giants composed mostly of hydrogen and helium, located beyond the asteroid belt.

36
Q

What is the Kuiper Belt?

A

A region of icy bodies and dwarf planets beyond Neptune’s orbit.

37
Q

What is the importance of the Oort Cloud?

A

It is a reservoir of comets that may influence the inner solar system and provide clues about solar system formation.

38
Q

Why does Earth have the highest density among the terrestrial planets? What does that mean?

A

Earth’s core is rich in heavy elements like iron and nickel, making it denser. High density means Earth has more mass per unit volume.

39
Q

What is the solar nebula?

A

A massive cloud of gas and dust from which the Sun and planets formed.

40
Q

What is angular momentum?

A

A physical property related to an object’s mass, velocity, and distance from a rotation axis, influencing rotational stability.

41
Q

What is the “snowline”?

A

The distance from the Sun where temperatures are low enough for volatile compounds, like water, to condense into ice.

42
Q

What are AUs?

A

Astronomical Units, a measure of distance in space, where 1 AU equals the average distance between Earth and the Sun (~93 million miles).

43
Q

What are icy planetesimals from the outer solar system?

A

Small, icy bodies made of water, carbon dioxide, and other volatiles that contributed to the formation of atmospheres and oceans on terrestrial planets.

44
Q

When was the Late Heavy Bombardment?

A

Approximately 4 billion years ago.

45
Q

How does Venus’s high atmospheric pressure and proximity to the Sun prevent it from having oceans?

A

High pressure and intense heat cause water to exist only as vapor, preventing the formation of liquid oceans.

46
Q

stages of solar systme development

A
47
Q
A
48
Q
A

Earth Focus (1 decks)

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